Description
WORK TOWARD BECOMING A REGISTERED PLAY THERAPIST
DESCRIPTION:
Grief is a complex and deeply personal experience that varies across developmental stages and cultural backgrounds. This training explores grief through the lens of play therapy, providing clinicians with developmentally appropriate and culturally responsive interventions to support grieving children and families. The training begins with an overview of grief, defining it beyond death loss. Participants learn how grief manifests differently across age groups, from young children who may express loss through play and behavior to adolescents who may struggle with vulnerability and identity in their grief process. We also examine cultural considerations, exploring how different communities view, express, and ritualize grief, emphasizing the importance of honoring these traditions in therapeutic work. Through bibliotherapy and play therapy interventions, this training equips clinicians with practical tools to help children process grief in a way that aligns with their cognitive and emotional development. Participants engage with activities that foster expression, meaning-making, and connection, ultimately expanding a child’s window of tolerance for grief. By integrating these approaches, clinicians can serve as a bridge, supporting children and families from where they are now to where they hope to be in their healing journey. Training uses Powerpoint presentation, videos and experiential activities to support participant learning.
Day1: Focus will be on defining grief, sociocultural trauma and healing and examining grief through the lens of culture.
Day 2: Focus will be on ways to address grief using specific play therapy interventions and techniques
Training will be in-person and limited to 6 participants. The ratio of participants to workshop leader is small to ensure opportunity to address individual questions, concerns and discussion.
TIME AND DATE: Saturday & Sunday, May 31-June 1, 2025 from 9:00 AM t0 4:30 PM
TARGET AUDIENCE: This course is designed for LMFTs, LCSWs, LPCCs, LEPs and pre-licensed associates
PREREQUISITES: None.
TRAINER: Cristal Alvarado, MFT, Registered Play Therapist, is a bilingual Marriage and Family Therapist with an MA in Counseling Psychology and Correctional Emphasis. She currently works with at-risk youth and Hayward families at the Hayward Police Department. Cristal previously worked with First Five in East San Jose and has been practicing play therapy for the last 4 years. Cristal provides play therapy trainings to agencies in the San Francisco Bay area. She has the innate ability to establish rapport quickly, build trust and effectively communicate in both English and Spanish. Additionally, Cristal finds redwood trees to be inspiring and symbolic; she makes the time to venture out and enjoy hikes and walks amongst the old, resilient, giants.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
- Participants will be able to demonstrate at least three (3) bibliotherapy interventions that help children express and process grief.
- Participants will be able to define grief beyond death loss and identify at least three (3) types of grief.
- Participants will be able to identify at least three (3) cultural factors that may influence a child’s grief response.
- Participants will be able to identify at least four (4) ways grief manifests in children across different developmental stages.
- Participants will be able to identify at least five (5) play-based interventions for grief that align with children’s cognitive and emotional development.
- Participants will be able to identify the six (6) R’s that help youth process and move through their grief.
- Participants will be able to explain how expressive arts (e.g., drawing, sand tray) can support grief processing.
- Participants will be able to apply at least four (4) strategies for processing books about grief with clients.
- Participants will be able to analyze at least three (3) ways in which grief is viewed, expressed, and ritualized across cultures.
CONTINUING EDUCATION
12 CEs-$25 additional charge. Purchase separately. Growth Through Play Therapy, is approved by the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists, 1032322, to sponsor continuing education for LMFT’S, LCSW’S, LPCC’S AND LEP’S. They maintain responsibility for this program/course and its content. .Growth through Play Therapy is an approved provider for the Association for Play Therapy APT 09-241 No extra charge for APT approval. These workshops and presenter have no conflict of interest in presenting this workshop, nor is there any commercial support
Partial credit cannot be offered.
CANCELLATION POLICY
Full refund if canceled 45 days in advance minus a $75 administrative fee. After that date there will be no refund unless space is filled from the waiting list. If the training is cancelled by Growth through Play Therapy, a full refund will be given unless the participant confirms by e-mail that they are registering for another class.
QUESTIONS: Contact Jeannette Harroun at jeannette@bayarea-counseling.com or 925-890-7478
