Working with children can be a rewarding yet challenging profession, requiring continuous professional development (CPD) to ensure that practitioners remain effective in their roles. SandStory Skills® Practioner Training is a valuable tool for professionals working with children, as isand play provides an expressive and non-verbal way for children to communicate their thoughts, feelings, and experiences. This blog offers insights into the benefits of this training for those seeking to enhance their skills and knowledge in this field.
Understanding Sand Play Therapy Sand play therapy is a form of expressive therapy that utilizes a tray of sand, along with miniature figures, to allow children to create scenes and stories. The process enables children to explore their emotions, fears, and desires in a safe and creative space. Sand play therapy is especially effective for children who may have difficulty expressing themselves verbally, making it an essential tool for professionals in the fields of child psychology, counseling, social work, education, and more. Therapists are trained to use sand play therapy and have a depth of knowledge that means they can support children with complex trauma. However, it is a powerful tool and can bring to the surface deep emotions that professionals working with children, may not feel equpped to handle. Benefits of Sand Play Therapy
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Non-Verbal Communication: SandStory® play allows children to communicate without the pressure of verbalizing their emotions, making it accessible for children of all ages and backgrounds.
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Catharsis and Emotional Release: The act of creating in the sand can help children release pent-up emotions, facilitating emotional healing.
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Problem Solving: SandStory® play encourages children to explore and resolve issues by creating and rearranging scenes in the sand.
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Development of Self-Awareness: Through SandStory® play, children can gain a better understanding of their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.
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Enhanced Relationship Building: Professionals can build a stronger therapeutic relationship with children through SandStory® play, as it fosters trust and open communication.
SandStory Skills Practitioner Training Our 6-module online training teaches the skills needed to become a Registered SandStory Skills® Practitioner and equips professionals who are not therapeutically qualified with essential skills to support the emotional wellbeing of children and young people. At it's heart, the training aims to delineate a 'line in the sand' in terms of the SAFE REMIT for practitioners - so that they keep themselves safe (within the remit of their job description) AND the participants (whether these are the children, young people or adults) in their care. The training draws on two main frameworks to delineate where the line is drawn and offers clarity on when to refer on their participants to qualified Therapists and Counsellors for professional therapeutic support. The training draws from the wonderful work of Margaret Lowenfeld who developed the 'Small World Technique. Her theory generated further theories around 'small world play', 'floor play' and 'table-top play'. In essence, SandStory Skills® uses sand and symbols as a creative means of expressing our inner stories in a gentle and safe way. We are offering this six module online training at half price until 1/01/2024- £150 instead of £300- not only will it give you new skills to help support the children you work with but it can be completed at your own pace and you will have access forever. To find out more and to enroll, please go to: https://outofthewoods-sss.thinkific.com/courses/sandstory-skills-practitioner-training
