USING PLAY THERAPY TECHNIQUES IN A PRESCHOOL SETTING HANNAH HARGREAVES B.A, Wilfrid Laurier University, 2016 A Project Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies of the University of Lethbridge in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF EDUCATION (COUNSELLING PSYCHOLOGY) Faculty of Education University of Lethbridge LETHBRIDGE, ALBERTA, CANADA © Hannah Hargreaves, 2019 USING PLAY THERAPY TECHNIQUES IN A PRESCHOOL SETTING HANNAH HARGREAVES Dr. N. Piquette Associate Professor Ph.D. Project Supervisor Dr. S. Dixon Assistant Professor Ph.D. Project Committee Member Dedication I would like to dedicate this project to my incredible support system without whom this amazing journey would not have been possible. To Derek, I appreciate you more than I could ever express in words. Thank you for your endless support and encouragement to follow my dreams, even when it meant moving to a new province. I wouldn’t be who I am today without you. To my family, thank you for your unending support throughout my masters. Your love, patience, kindness and humour are my inspiration and what continue to carry me through my educational career. To my friends, thank you for teaching me what true friendship is all about. Even though we all have different life journeys, it is truly amazing how many of you take the time to check up on me, rant about our bad days, and offer a helping hand or shoulder to cry on. I could not have done this without you! iii Abstract During the early educational years of preschool and kindergarten, children who may experience behavioural difficulties such as inattention, aggression, or lack of appropriate social skills can pose difficult challenges for early childhood educators and school counsellors. This project focuses on providing school counsellors with the opportunity to collaborate with educators in a school setting by attending a workshop which will help to ensure proper implementation of a proactive play therapy techniques manual within preschool and kindergarten classrooms in order to benefit all children. This program allows for learning and growth in four key areas: emotional expression, stress management, problem solving and social skills. It is hoped that through this final project, the gap between play therapy and early childhood education will begin to close. Keywords: play therapy, social-emotional development, early childhood education iv Acknowledgements A big thank you to my supervisor, Dr. Noella Piquette, for her constant support and guidance throughout the creation of this final project. Her consistently kind words and extremely helpful constructive feedback were the motivation I needed to keep working after every draft. Also, thank you to Dr. Sandra Dixon for her contributions as second reader. Your helpful comments and personal contributions gave me a much needed second perspective. v Table of Contents Dedication .......................................................................................................................... iii Abstract .............................................................................................................................. iv Acknowledgements ..............................................................................................................v Table of Contents ............................................................................................................... vi Chapter One: Overview and Introduction ............................................................................1 Project Rationale ..............................................................................................................2 Glossary ............................................................................................................................4 Project Format ..................................................................................................................5 Statement of Personal Interest ..........................................................................................5 Chapter Two: Review of the Literature ...............................................................................8 An Introduction to Play Therapy ......................................................................................8 History of Play Therapy .................................................................................................10 Origins. .......................................................................................................................10 Theories of Child Development .....................................................................................15 Freud’s psychoanalytic theory ....................................................................................15 Erikson’s psychosocial theory. ...................................................................................16 Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. .................................................................17 Vygotsky’s theory of child development ....................................................................19 Albert Bandura’s social learning theory. ....................................................................20 vi Bowlby’s attachment theory of human development .................................................21 Summary ........................................................................................................................24 Play Therapy Modalities ................................................................................................24 Client-centred play therapy.........................................................................................24 Adlerian play therapy. ................................................................................................25 Non-directive play therapy. ........................................................................................26 Cognitive-behavioural play therapy. ..........................................................................26 Play Therapy Settings ....................................................................................................27 Office-based play therapy. ..........................................................................................28 School-based play therapy. .........................................................................................29 Play Therapy in Early Childhood Education ..................................................................30 Social-emotional wellbeing. .......................................................................................32 Aggressive, externalizing, and disruptive behaviours. ...............................................33 Summary ........................................................................................................................35 Chapter Three: Methodology .............................................................................................37 Research Focus ..............................................................................................................37 Project Assembly ............................................................................................................38 Ethical Considerations ....................................................................................................39 Editorial Standards .........................................................................................................39 Benefits and Impacts Associated with the Final Project ................................................39 vii Implications for Educators .............................................................................................40 Workshop Overview ......................................................................................................42 Manual Overview ...........................................................................................................43 Chapter Four: Discussion ...................................................................................................45 Strengths .........................................................................................................................46 Limitations .....................................................................................................................47 Areas of Future Research ...............................................................................................48 Chapter Summary ...........................................................................................................50 Closing Remarks ............................................................................................................50 References ..........................................................................................................................52 Appendix A: Play Therapy Techniques Workshop ........................................................59 Appendix B: Manual ....................................................................................................120 viii 1 Chapter One: Overview and Introduction The importance of the use of play therapy with children has been well documented. The therapeutic powers of play include eight broad categories including: emotional regulation, communication, relationship enhancement, moral judgement, ego boosting, stress management, preparation for life, and self-actualization (Schaefer, 2011). These categories contain many of the main benefits of play and