Play Therapy Classes

Practice your therapy techniques through play therapy classes.

Play therapy classes provide mental health professionals an opportunity to learn and practice therapy techniques to use during play therapy sessions. Mary Ruth Cross and the Academy for Play Therapy Training™ offers many play therapy classes, workshops, and continuing education credential for those starting or continuing work as a Registered Play Therapist.

For example, one of the exciting play therapy continuing education workshops, offered by Mary Ruth Cross and the Academy for Play Therapy Training™, is a play therapy retreat! A mental health professional can earn up to 20 continuing education by attending this retreat and meeting the required guidelines. (For reference, this intensive play therapy experiential retreat is approved for MFT’s, LPC’s, LCSW’s, LEP’s and licensed mental health professionals.) This play therapy retreat will explore what it means to use play therapy with multiple populations, including children, teens, individuals, couples and families. Plus, the retreat experience also incorporates a growth component with an emphasis on self-care and relaxation for all those who participate!

Another one of the innovative play therapy classes offered by Mary Ruth Cross at the Academy for Play Therapy Training™ is what we call “Betrayal and Resiliency: Creating Healing from Sexual Abuse Using Play Therapy”. Because the pain and suffering experienced from sexual abuse can linger throughout a lifetime, this workshop uses innovative techniques while examining the dynamics and issues related to the treatment of sexual abuse and trauma. This workshop moves through the many layers of sexual abuse; from betrayal to surviving and thriving. We discuss options for treatment and explore how play therapy models can be used to both examine and enhance resiliency.

Learn advanced techniques.

Current or studying Play Therapists may also be interested in diving deeper into one or many play therapy techniques. In a class aptly title “Digging Deeper: Sandtray Therapy with Youth and Families in Play Therapy”, our team addresses the unique modality of incorporating the use of sand and miniatures to safely explore a client’s internal world. This workshop takes participants beyond basic understanding and explores the use of Sandtray Therapy with different populations and clinical issues.

For an entire list of play therapy classes, all available at the Academy for Play Therapy Training™, please review our website. If you are new to play therapy and play therapy classes, you may wish to start with the class title “Playing Around: Integrating Play Into Child Therapy”. This foundational workshop gives participants a full understanding of play therapy from beginning theory to integrating learned play therapy techniques into every stage of development. This class ensures all participants leave with a firm foundation in regards to play therapy and feel comfortable using the many play therapy techniques in an active child therapy practice. This is a highly interactive workshop that integrates theory, techniques, and creativity with a goal of building play into every session! Play interventions in this class will include expressive arts, role-play, puppet play, storytelling, sensory play, games, and activities for every developmental stage.

If you are interested in any of these play therapy classes, workshops, or retreats, please review the Academy for Play Therapy Training™ website at https://www.trainingplaytherapy.com. Know that the classes mentioned here are only a brief few of all that we offer. Review our entire class library at https://www.trainingplaytherapy.com/courses/. If you are wondering how to get Registered Play Therapy, you may wish to reach out to our team directly with any questions you might have. You can give us a call at (925) 626-0084 or send an email to Maryruth@tcservices.org. Located in the San Francisco Bay Area, the Academy for Play Therapy Training™ is an approved provider for the California Board of Behavioral Sciences, the Association for Play Therapy, and the American Psychological Association.

Mary Ruth Cross is an approved to provide play therapy continuing education units to MFT’s, LCSW’s, LPCC’s,and Psychologists. (APT Approved Provider 09-2411 CEs for Marriage & Family Therapists, Licensed Social Workers, Professional Counselors and Psychologists offered through Sierra Institute for Contemporary Gestalt Therapy BBS provider 349 and approved by APA AND Association for Play Therapy -APT Approved Provider 09-241.)

Sign up for a class today.

We provide these CEs through play therapy continuing education workshops, such as our play therapy trainings, play therapy conferences, and specified play therapy certification credits. We look forward to hearing from you soon and meeting your need for play therapy classes!