Playful Beginnings

Understanding Our Listeners

Hi everyone! In this episode, we're trying to address your questions about note taking. We want to ask your questions to the best of our abilities, and we are working on it. Here is our processing of the experience and how we can engage with our own note taking! Take a listen, we hope it's helpful!

Notes that Make Sense: The WHY behind our CCPT Skills

We heard you- you are having a hard time knowing what to say in your notes. We've got you! There isn't a script you can use for CCPT notes- it is dependent upon the child, the relationship, the play- but we can help you conceptualize how it may work! Listen in for examples!

The Rest of the Clinical File: Custody, Informed Consent, and Addendums

Notes include a lot more than what happens in sessions and the conceptualization of clients. These include custody agreements, divorce decrees, releases of information, auxiliary notes detailing conversations, emails, CPS reports. All of these things are vital, but we don't always talk about them. This week, Dr. Kristie and Dr. Maggie share this and more to support you, the clinician, in ensuring you are exploring all aspects of note taking!

To Note, or Not to Note? 📝

Clipboard in hand or fully in the moment? 🧸✨ In this episode of Playful Beginnings, we’re diving into one of the most debated topics in child therapy: Should play therapists take notes during a session? On one hand, real-time documentation captures the brilliant, subtle moments of play while they’re fresh. On the other hand… nothing breaks a child’s flow quite like a therapist constantly looking down at a notepad. We’re breaking down: 🎯 How note-taking impacts the therapeutic alliance and child connection 🧠 Strategies for holding onto key session details without writing mid-play ⚖️ Finding a realistic balance between thorough documentation and being 100% present Whether you’re team "write it down immediately" or team "put the pen away," we’ve got thoughts for you. 🎧 Listen now on your favorite podcast platform! #PlayTherapy #ChildTherapy #PlayTherapist #PlayfulBeginnings #TherapistLife #MentalHealthProfessionals #ChildPsychology #TherapistNotes

From Playroom to Page: Effective & Efficient Documentation Strategies

How do you capture non-verbal play, behavioral themes, and clinical progress clearly in a progress note? 🎨📋 In this week's episode of Playful Beginnings, we dive deep into the fundamentals of play therapy documentation. We share simple frameworks for structuring notes, translating play behaviors into objective clinical language, and optimizing your documentation workflow. Listen in on your preferred podcast platform! 🎙️

The Nuts and Bolts of Note Taking: CCPT Edition

A complete play therapy record is so much more than just weekly progress notes! 📂✨ In this episode of Playful Beginnings, we’re taking a deep dive into the essential aspects of notetaking from the initial contact to the subsequent parent consultations. We break down how to read and navigate complex parenting plans, set clear legal and clinical boundaries with caregivers up front, translate intake assessment findings into child-centered treatment goals, and write clean, objective addendums when clinical situations evolve. 🎧 Tune in to make your administrative file as strong, clear, and clinical as your playroom work!

Understanding Evidence Based. What does it mean and why is it important?

In this episode, Drs. Kristie and Maggie break down what it means to be evidenced based and why you can't say that you are CCPT and CBT. We go through what that actually means and how it may not be as helpful as one would think. Sometimes, putting together two good things doesn't create something better. Same goes with theory. Listen to this week's episode to learn why. Have questions about play therapy, child development, or child mental health? Send us your questions and videos to info@playtherapyspace.com or playtherapyspace on facebook and theplaytherapyspace on instagram and we'll feature you on our an episode!

• Transcript

Structured Doll Play: Supporting Kids Through Transitions

Ever wonder why kids melt down before a field trip, panic over substitute teachers, or struggle with simple routine changes? 🧸👇 Transitions are hard—for kids, parents, teachers, and therapists alike. But there is a proven tool that bridges the gap between fear and feeling safe: Structured Doll Play. In this episode of Playful Beginnings, Dr. Kristie and Maggie break down this powerful intervention from the Child-Parent Relationship Therapy (CPRT) Manual (Landreth & Bratton, 2006). Inside this episode, you’ll learn: What structured doll play actually is (and why it works so well for anxious kids). How play therapists can guide parents to use this technique effectively at home. Practical strategies for parents and teachers to prepare kids for big changes, field trips, and new environments. Whether you're in the clinic, the classroom, or at the kitchen table, this episode gives you actionable tools you can use immediately.

Back to School Part 2: Making Space for Big Feelings

In this week's Playful Beginnings, Drs. Kristie and Maggie get practical — the routines worth shifting now, the logistics that quietly ease anxiety, and the one thing almost every family over schedules away without meaning to. Below, we've pulled the most useful pieces into two sections: one for parents in the thick of it, and one for fellow play therapists supporting families through it. Parents, you can use these at home. Play therapists, you can provide these to parents in your next consultation.

Back to School Transition: Adapting to a new normal

As the summer season draws to a close, some children may experience difficulties with the back to school transition, with anxiety and fears potentially manifesting prior to the start of the academic year. In this episode of Playful Beginnings, Kristie and Maggie delve into the ways in which children may respond and exhibit behaviors at home and in the playroom, providing valuable insights for parents and play therapists to better understand the needs of their young clients. This episode serves as a valuable resource for play therapists to inform their conversations with parents and for parents to gain a deeper understanding of their children's emotions as they transition back to school. The return to routine after a relaxing vacation can be challenging for all. Back to Life, Back to Reality. Listen to our latest podcast episode wherever you access your podcasts. #backtoschool #backtoschool📚 #backtoschoolblues #backtoschoolblues😢 #backtoschoolblues📚 #backtoschoolblues😭 #backtoschoolanxiety #backtoschoolanxietytips #backtoschoolanxietyhelp #backtoschoolanxietyhack #ccpt #childcenteredplaytheray #childcenteredplaytherapy #playtherapy #playtherapyuk #playtherapykit #playtherapytoys #PlayTherapyTools #playtherapyworks #playtherapytraining #playtherapycommunity #parentsofanxiouskids #parentsofanxiouschildren #parentsofanxiouslearners

Demystifying CCPT and Parent Consultations with Dr. Ahou Line.

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Ahou Line to dive into one of the most critical—and often daunting—aspects of being a play therapist: working with parents and caregivers. Dr. Line shares insights from her new Routledge textbook, Working with Parents in Play Therapy, offering clinicians a roadmap to transform parent consultations from nerve-wracking updates into culturally attuned, highly collaborative partnerships.

Child Centered Play Therapy and Internalizing Behaviors: With Dr. Jenna Taylor

Listen in to hear more from Dr. Jenna Taylor on children who experience internalizing behaviors. Dr. Taylor engaged in a large meta-analysis to better understand the effect of CCPT on children who experience anxiety, depression, social withdrawal, among others. Listen in to learn more about how to speak with parents and teachers about childhood depression and anxiety, how internalizing behaviors can present in the school setting and at home, and how CCPT can benefit!

Getting to know Dr. Jenna Taylor and her research into CCPT and Internalizing Behaviors

Join us as we speak with Dr. Jenna Taylor, author of a newly published meta analysis of CCPT and Internalizing Behaviors. Drs. Kristie and Maggie speak with Dr. Jenna about her entry into Child Centered Play Therapy, her experience as a CCPT therapist, and her dissertation. We hope you enjoy this episode and look forward to learning with you!

Childhood Depression: Symptoms to look out for and how CCPT can support

When we think of depression in adults, we picture sadness, withdrawal, and low energy. But in children, depression rarely looks like a miniature version of adult despair. Instead, it frequently masks itself as irritability, physical somatic complaints, or behavioral outbursts. In this episode, we break down the complex symptomology of childhood depression, discuss why these signs are so easily mislabeled by schools and parents, and explore how Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) offers children a safe, non-verbal space to process their internal world. Listen today to learn more. Up next we have Dr. Jenna Taylor who discusses how CCPT aligns with internalizing behaviors (aka depression). Don't forget to like and subscribe!

Unlocking Potential—How Child-Centered Play Therapy Transforms School Experiences with Dr. Kristi Perryman

Episode 2: Join us for an insightful conversation with Dr. Kristi Perryman as we delve into the transformative power of Child-Centered Play Therapy in schools. Discover how this approach not only enhances the school experience but also nurtures emotional growth and resilience in children. Tune in to learn why play is more than just fun—it's a vital tool for development and understanding.

🧸 Honoring a Legend: Remembering Dr. Garry Landreth 🕊️

"Toys are children's words and play is their language." It is with heavy hearts, but profound gratitude, that we dedicate this episode to the father of Child-Centered Play Therapy, Dr. Garry Landreth. The play therapy community lost a giant, but his legacy lives on in every playroom, every therapeutic relationship, and every child who has ever been truly seen and heard through the power of play. In this special tribute episode, we look back at the radical empathy, wisdom, and warmth Dr. Landreth brought to our field. He didn't just teach us a modality; he taught us a way of being with children—reminding us always to follow the child’s lead and trust their capacity for growth. 🎙️ In This Episode, We Reflect On: The Heart of CCPT: How his foundational teachings transformed the landscape of child counseling and play therapy. His Timeless Wisdom: Revisiting the core principles that continue to guide our clinical practice and parenting every single day. Our Personal Reflections: What Dr. Landreth’s mentorship, books, and presence meant to us as clinicians, educators, and human beings. Dr. Landreth taught us that the most powerful thing we can offer a child is our complete, unconditional presence. We hope to honor that gift by continuing to share his message with clinicians, teachers, and parents everywhere. Thank you, Dr. Landreth, for teaching us how to listen with our hearts. You will be deeply missed, but your words will echo in playrooms forever. 🎒🧸 🎧 Listen now: Click the link in our bio or search for Playful Beginnings wherever you get your podcasts. If you have a favorite memory, quote, or lesson from Dr. Landreth, please share it in the comments below. Let’s fill this space with the love and connection he so beautifully championed. 👇❤️ #PlayTherapy #ChildCenteredPlayTherapy #CCPT #GarryLandreth #PlayTherapists #MentalHealthMatters #PlayIsTheirLanguage #PlayfulBeginningsPodcast #CounselorEducation

Healing in the Hallways: Bringing Play Therapy into Schools with Dr. Kristi Perryman

What happens when we meet children where they spend the majority of their lives—not in an isolated clinic, but right in the school building? In this episode, we sit down with the incredible Dr. Kristi Perryman, Director and Founder of the Office of Play Therapy Research and Training at the University of Arkansas and Chair-Elect for the national Association for Play Therapy (APT) Board. Long before she was a leading researcher and counselor educator, Dr. Perryman was on the front lines as a special education teacher, elementary school counselor, and middle school counselor. She lived the realities of the school system firsthand. Dr. Perryman shares the powerful story of what drove her from the classroom to the playroom, and how her early days in the schools shaped her passion for Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT). We dive deep into: The "Why": The turning points in her early career that revealed a massive gap in how schools address emotional and trauma-related barriers to learning. The "How": Practical strategies for successfully advocating for, setting up, and integrating sustainable play therapy programs within public school systems. The Impact: How her landmark research proves that honoring a child's natural language—play—directly shifts behavioral, emotional, and even academic outcomes. Whether you are a school counselor trying to carve out a therapeutic space, a clinician looking to partner with local districts, or an educator wanting to understand the neuroscience of healing, Dr. Perryman’s journey provides a masterclass in systemic advocacy and deep compassion.

Dr. PJ Blanco provides Tips and Insights for CCPT in Schools

In this episode, the hosts sit down with prominent child-centered play therapy (CCPT) researcher Dr. PJ Bianco to discuss the complex real-world challenges of practicing in school environments. The conversation centers heavily on a common point of friction for school counselors and contracted clinicians: navigating school administrations that ban or restrict aggressive toys from the playroom. The guest and hosts share clinical anecdotes, strategy adaptations, and therapeutic mindsets for maintaining programmatic success when systemic bureaucracy limits your toolset.

CCPT and Academic Success with Dr. PJ Blanco

Play Therapy & Academic Success In this episode of Playful Beginnings, the hosts sit down with Dr. PJ Blanco to unpack his groundbreaking research on the correlation between Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) and academic achievement. Key Takeaways from the Conversation: The Academic Disconnect: Schools frequently pour resources into traditional academic interventions (tutoring, extra drills, remedial classes). However, Dr. Blanco’s research reveals that for many children, academic struggles are not a cognitive capability issue, but an emotional and regulatory barrier. The Power of the Data: Dr. Blanco discusses his empirical studies showing that children who received CCPT demonstrated statistically significant gains in academic achievement—particularly in reading and math—compared to control groups, even though academic material is never introduced in the playroom. Unlocking Intrinsic Motivation: By providing a non-directive environment where children experience unconditional acceptance and autonomy, CCPT directly targets and reduces performance anxiety, stress, and learned helplessness. When the emotional weight is lifted, the child’s natural desire and capacity to learn are unlocked. Systemic Advocacy: The episode emphasizes the necessity of using this concrete data to advocate for play therapy funding and dedicated spaces within school systems, shifting the narrative from play being "just a reward" to play being a foundational catalyst for school success.

Child Centered Play Therapy and Academic Achievement

Play Heals and Helps Kids Thrive in School! 🧸📈 When people think of Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT), they usually think about emotional regulation, trauma healing, and behavioral growth. But did you know it also has a massive, evidence-based impact on academic achievement? On this week’s episode of Playful Beginnings, we are thrilled to sit down with the incredible Dr. PJ Blanco to talk about his groundbreaking research on school-based play therapy! 🎒✨ Dr. Blanco’s work bridges the gap between clinical mental health and classroom success. He shares the fascinating data behind how providing children with a safe, non-directive play environment actually unlocks their capacity to learn, focus, and thrive academically. In this episode, we explore: The Research Breakdown: Dr. Blanco dives into his studies showing statistically significant increases in academic achievement scores for children who receive CCPT. The Intrinsic Motivation Factor: How play therapy serves as a protective shield, fostering a child's internal drive to learn and self-regulate, even when facing performance anxiety. Why Traditional Academic Interventions Aren't Enough: Why focusing only on tutoring or drills misses the emotional roadblocks that keep kids from reaching their full potential. Advocating in the School System: Practical ways play therapists and school counselors can use this powerful data to advocate for play therapy clinics and funding within school districts. If you’ve ever needed the hard data to prove to an administrator, school board, or parent that play is serious work, this is the episode you’ve been waiting for! 📊💡 🎧 Tune in now! Search Playful Beginnings on your favorite podcast app or click the link in our bio to listen to our conversation with Dr. Blanco. #PlayfulBeginningsPodcast #CCPT #PlayTherapyResearch #AcademicAchievement #SchoolCounseling #EvidenceBasedPractice #PlayHeals #SchoolMentalHealth #ChildCentered This Research Spotlight with Dr. Pedro J. Blanco features the guest discussing how school-based play therapy serves as a protective factor for children's intrinsic motivation and academic success.