University of Wyoming College of Education Spring 2018

Leads to
Counseling
PlayCertification
By: Alli Barker
Play therapy is a form of therapeutic counseling that
encourages children from ages 3 to 10 to develop an
ability to express and communicate their feelings through
play. It was designed to encourage development, create
an emotional balance, resolve possible trauma issues and
improve social communication skills in young children.
During a typical session, children are observed to help
locate and identify their emotions or possible issues that
may be agitating them psychosocially.
The School of Counseling, Leadership, Advocacy,
and Design at the University of Wyoming College
of Education is one of only a handful of counselor
preparation programs that offer a play therapy course.
It is even more rare to find a program, like the one at
UW, that requires all counseling students to take the
3-credit course.
Associate Professor Kara Holt, who is coordinator
of the play therapy program, explains the reasons UW
requires the course. “As a counseling program, we work
hard to prepare our students to be generalist and also
recognize that living in a rural state, we need to offer
comprehensive training so that our students are equipped
to provide counseling across the lifespan.” Holt was
awarded the certification so she could support the training
of others at the UW College of Education.
In order to provide a greater benefit to students, the
Counseling Program has sought and received approval
from the Center for Play Therapy to count the UW
play therapy course as credit towards achieving Child-
Centered Play Therapist (CCPT) and Certified Child-
Parent Relationship Therapist (CPRT) certifications.
These certifications will allow counseling graduates to
expand their services and provide high-quality researchedbased
therapeutic services to children and their families
across Wyoming.
Graduates who complete CCPT Certification are
able to provide developmentally responsive, play-based
mental health intervention for children ages 3 to 10.
CCPT uses play as a safe environment that children will
feel comfortable in while experiencing acceptance and
empathy from the counselor.
Counseling students who seek CPRT certification can
provide a play-based treatment program for children with
behavioral, emotional, social and attachment disorders.
The certification allows counseling graduates to teach
parents vital skills that encourage attachment bonds with
their children.
Many students who have taken the play therapy course
have aspirations to become certified. “Being able
to take the play therapy class gave me a great foundation.
I am planning on becoming a certified play therapist in the
course of my work as a counselor. This class gave me a head
start on that,” says Ronda Cauffman a master’s student in
counseling.
Current counseling students who have been exposed
to play therapy through the course believe in its ability to
positively affect young children. “Play therapy is incredibly
powerful, and I have already seen how it can help children
work through issues at a young age,” says Cauffman. Jessica
Ryan, who’s pursuing her master’s degree in counseling
and has also taken the course, shares this opinion, “If we
can foster healing spaces, healthy attachments, and more
empathy when the brain is forming—the world is bound
to be a better place.”
Kirk Thiemann (top image), Ph.D. student
in counselor education, and Lay-nah Blue
Morris-Howe (bottom image), assistant
professor in counseling, interact with children
during play therapy sessions in the UW
Counselor Education Training Clinic.
22 • Education@UWYO Spring 2018