Play Therapy: Engaging and Powerful Techniques for the Treatment of Disruptive Behavior Disorders and Trauma

Credit

Program Information

All members of the PESI, Inc. planning committee have provided disclosures of financial relationships with ineligible organizations and any relevant non-financial relationships prior to planning content for this activity. None of the committee members had relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies or other potentially biasing relationships to disclose to learners.  For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.

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Canada Credit - *

NOTE: Tuition includes one free CE Certificate (participant will be able to print the certificate of completion after passing the online post-test (80% passing score) and completing the evaluation). Instructional methods will include PowerPoint, didactic lecture, and others.

Continuing Education Information:  Listed below are the continuing education credit(s) currently available for this non-interactive self-study package. Program content is reviewed periodically per accrediting board rules for currency and appropriateness for credit. Credit approvals are subject to change. Please note, your licensing board dictates whether self-study is an acceptable form of continuing education, as well as which credit types are acceptable for continuing education hours. Please refer to your licensing board's rules and regulations. If your profession is not listed, please contact your licensing board to determine your continuing education requirements and check for reciprocal approval. 
For other credit inquiries not specified below, please contact info@pesi.com or 800-844-8260 before purchase.

Materials that are included in this course may include interventions and modalities that are beyond the authorized practice of your profession.  As a licensed professional, you are responsible for reviewing the scope of practice, including activities that are defined in law as beyond the boundaries of practice in accordance with and in compliance with your profession's standards.  

For Planning Committee disclosures, please see the statement above.  For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.

 

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Canada Credit - ---

Earn up to 12.0 CE hours. Please see below, for more details, as credit amounts vary by jurisdiction and profession. 

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Canada Credit - Canadian Counsellors and Psychotherapists

PESI, Inc. is approved by the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association to offer continuing education for counsellors and psychotherapists. PESI, Inc. maintains responsibility for the program. This self-study activity is approved for 12.0 credit hours.

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Canada Credit - Canadian Psychologists

PESI, Inc. is approved by the Canadian Psychological Association to offer continuing education for psychologists. PESI, Inc. maintains responsibility for the program. This program is approved for 12.0 self-study continuing education hours. Full credit statement at: www.pesi.com/cpa-statement

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Canada Credit - Social Workers - National ASWB ACE

PESI, Inc., #1062, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: January 27, 2026 - January 27, 2029. Social workers completing this course receive 12.0 Clinical continuing education credits.

Course Level: Intermediate Format: Recorded asynchronous distance. Full attendance is required; no partial credits will be offered for partial attendance.

 

Canadian Social Workers: Canadian provinces may accept activities offered by providers approved by the ASWB ACE program for ongoing professional development.

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Canada Credit - Other Professions

This self-study activity qualifies for 12.0 continuing education clock hours as required by many national and local licensing boards and professional organizations. Save your activity advertisement and certificate of completion, and contact your own board or organization for specific requirements.

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US National Boards - Occupational Therapists & Occupational Therapy Assistants

 

PESI, Inc.  is an AOTA Approved Provider of professional development. Approved provider # 3322. This Distance-Learning Independent activity is offered at 1.20  CEUs Intermediate , OT Service Delivery; Professonal Issues; Foundational Knowledge . The assignment of AOTA CEUs does not imply endorsement of specific course content, products, or clinical procedures by AOTA.   Full attendance at this live activity qualifies for 12.0 contact hours.

 

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Handouts

Speaker

Clair Mellenthin, PhD, LCSW, RPT-S™ Related seminars and products

Clair Mellenthin, LLC

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Clair Mellenthin, PhD, LCSW, RPT-S™, is an international speaker, author, psychologist, and Registered Play Therapist Supervisor. Throughout her career, she has specialized in providing play therapy to children, teens, and their families. She is currently the Director of Child & Adolescents at Wasatch Family Therapy. Ms. Mellenthin frequently presents professional play therapy and family therapy trainings on Attachment-Centered Play Therapy, Family, and Trauma issues both nationally and internationally.

Ms. Mellenthin is a sought-after supervisor, training graduate students and interns in play therapy, and an adjunct faculty member at the University of Southern California MSW program. She is the past-president of the Utah Association for Play Therapy and remains an active member on the Board of Directors. She is the author of the books Attachment Centered Play Therapy; Play Therapy: Engaging & Powerful Techniques for the Treatment of Childhood Disorders; My Many Colors of Me Workbookand has authored several chapters and articles. In addition to being an experienced play therapist and professor, Ms. Mellenthin also appears on local and national TV and radio as an expert on children and family issues. She holds a master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Southern California.

Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Clair Mellenthin has an employment relationship with Wasatch Family Therapy. She is a published author and receives royalties. Clair Mellenthin receives a speaking honorarium, recording royalties, and book royalties from PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Clair Mellenthin is a member of the National Association of Social Workers, the Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, the American Psychological Association, and the Association for Play Therapy.

Additional Info

Program Information

Access never expires for this product.

For a more detailed outline that includes times or durations of time, if needed, please contact cepepesi.com

Visit our FAQ page at https://www.pesicanada.ca/faq or contact us at https://www.pesicanada.ca/contact-us.

Objectives

1. Assess emotional and behavioral symptoms through play therapy techniques to better inform treatment outcomes.
2. Determine the ethical implications and clinical limitations of using play therapy in clinical practice.
3. Integrate attachment-based play activities into your practice to improve client engagement in treatment.
4. Determine the neurobiological implications of using play therapy among clients with various diagnoses.
5. Develop a plan for introducing play therapy into clinical practice for treatment resistant and challenging children and families.
6. Defend how play therapy can reframe trauma experiences, increase self-regulation and connect to a mind-body awareness.
7. Develop attachment patterns that impact parent-child relationships to further advance your clinical practice.
8. Employ play therapy interventions to foster engagement with parents in family play therapy in order to repair, and enhance the parent-child relationship.
9. Apply mindfulness skills and practice in play therapy treatment to promote self-soothing and affect regulation.
10. Assess the psychological impact and long-term effects of emotional trauma on a client’s mental health.
11. Develop treatment strategies to teach attachment-focused parenting techniques.
12. Practice expressive arts, sandtray, and child-centered play therapy interventions to enhance engagement with child clients.

Outline

• Therapeutic power of play
• Facilities communication
• Fosters emotional wellness
• Enhances social relationships
• Increases personal strengths

• Common myths of behavior disorders
• Systemic assessment of emotional and behavioral distress
  • School, home, and community relationships
  • Impact of inconsistent and harsh parenting/relationships practices
• Race, gender, ethnicity, culture issues and bias
• Trauma assessment

• Recurrent behavioral and relational patterns
• Impact on the family system
• Shame and vulnerability (in the family) – The Kryptonite!
  • Cycle of disconnect, rejection, and attachment ruptures
• Environmental risk factors

• Play-based regulation and co-regulation techniques
  • Calm down jars
  • Lemon squeezies
  • Blast It!
  • Guided imagery
• Repair and enhance relationships
  • Shame shields
  • Feeling monsters

• Misdiagnosis and misunderstandings
  • Gender and racial bias in diagnosis
• Trauma history of the child
• Impact of trauma on brain development and maladaptive coping response
• Patterns of engagement in the home, school, and community
• Impact on family relationships

• Etiology of trauma in disruptive behavior disorders
• Impact on neurological functioning and development
• PTSD – the most overlooked diagnosis contributing to Disruptive Behavior Disorders (DBD)
• Assess for attachment ruptures and relational trauma
• Shame-based punitive parenting
• Repair and restore safety in the home

• Increase emotional intelligence and understand trauma symptoms
  • Bound and rebound
  • Sandtray
  • Expressive arts in play
• Repair and rebuild relationships
  • Nurturing spoons
  • Volcano inside of me

• Building bridges of connection and communication
• Create emotional safety
• My safe place
• Telling my story
• My many colors of me

• Help the parent become a resource to their child
• Decrease shame and vulnerability in the relationship
• Improve healthy attachment-seeking behaviors
• Repair attachment wounds and ruptures
• Teach positive parenting strategies

Target Audience

• Mental Health Clinicians
• School Counsellors
• Psychologists
• Physicians
• Counsellors
• Social Workers
• Marriage and Family Therapists
• Play Therapists
• Occupational Therapists
• Speech-Language Pathologists