The Importance Of Play Therapy In The Playroom

Throughout the video, Garry Landreth makes important points about the toys and materials you should use in your playroom. Dr. Landreth also makes an important point about where play therapy can be conducted. Dr. Landreth explains that you can provide play therapy anywhere you would like. You do not need a huge playroom to be able to provide the child with adequate play therapy. The only limitation to where you can conduct play therapy is outside. Dr. Landreth explained that conducting play therapy outside can be distracting to the child. While watching the video, what stood out to be was when Dr. Landreth stated that, “toys and materials should be selected, not collected.” I can imagine that a beginner play therapist may be excepted to gather

Landreth stated that board games may hinder the child’s abilities to express his or her self, I found myself having resistance to this statement. Dr. Landreth described that board games have rules and restrictions that go against child-center techniques. However, I feel that the rules and restrictions in board games should not matter because the child should be allowed to play with the board game in whichever way the child likes. The child has the ability to come up with their own rules while playing a board game; hence, the child is not bonded to the restriction that board games may

This allows the child to be in control while the therapist follows the child’s lead and choice of rules for the board game. Furthermore, Dr. Landreth mentioned that using board games makes the therapist be in the role or teacher rather than in the role of therapist. However, when allowing the child to be creative with their own rules, the therapist does not have to be in the role of teacher. Dr. Landreth continues to state that true play needs to be spontaneous; hence, the child can be spontaneous by creating their own rules when playing a board game. When Dr. Landreth said that some therapist children to win when playing a game together made me feel a bit uncomfortable. He mentioned that some children know when the therapist is allowing them to win. When I play games with the child I work with in my practicum, I usually play the games fairly and do not easily allow the child to win. I feel that when the child does win, he or she might feel some achievement that they won the game fairly, rather than the me making the game purposely easier for