Certificate in Sandplay Therapy & Symbol Work

with Children, Adolescents & Adults

15 days – 4 training workshops – 105 hours

Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Auckland, Kuala Lumpur

Course created and directed by Mark Pearson and Helen Wilson

Authors of:  SANDPLAY & SYMBOL WORK (ACER Press, 2001)

Sandplay Therapy is a hands-on, expressive counselling and psychotherapy modality that has been in use for over seventy years. Sandplay forms a bridge between verbal therapy and the expressive therapies, combining elements of each. Sandplay allows the deeper aspects of the psyche to be worked with naturally and in safety, and is highly effective in reducing the emotional causes behind difficult behaviours.

With an extensive research and literature base, Sandplay is a powerful therapeutic method for use by established professionals. It has been used with children, adolescents and adults, in schools, hospitals, welfare agencies and private therapy practices.

This course provides a thorough training, with extensive practical experience and supervision in the Expressive Therapies approach to Sandplay Therapy and Symbol Work. The method of Sandplay that will be introduced was developed by Dora Kalff in the late 1950s, from Dr Margaret Lowenfeld’s play therapy. Sandplay is now taught and practised around the world, supported by the International Society for Sandplay Therapy.

The Expressive Therapies approach combines Jungian and Gestalt theory and applies this to working with small symbolic objects, either in a sandtray or on a drawing book. The play aspect of this approach makes it inviting and non-threatening. Sandplay has an important role in helping clients deal with emotional problems and can be incorporated into traditional counselling with children, adolescents and adults. It can offer ways to help clients resolve family issues, contact and deepen personal resourcefulness, and promote emotional resiliency. It is an effective support for transpersonal exploration.

Sandplay and Symbol Work exercises have been found to support insight into emotional problems - helping with the release of emotional stress that can drive acting out - and supporting clients with limited access to verbal skills. By utilising a number of intelligences - as identified by Harvard researcher Howard Gardner - activities involving the use of sand and symbols can provide a powerful means for emotional transformation and psychological healing.

The most extensive Sandplay training in Australia, based on twenty years of experience and development, this course provides advanced training in understanding clients’ sand creations. It provides clear guidelines and contraindications that support therapeutic confidence in using these interventions that can access deeper layers of emotion and support transformation of unconscious processes in the psyche.

This is a highly experiential, interactive program that will provide many skills to support your clients move into resilience and emotional fluency. There will be illustrated case studies. A manual will be provided for each workshop, and a Book of Readings.

COMPONENTS OF THE CERTIFICATE COURSE

WORKSHOP 1  Foundation Skills  - 5 days

            • Introduction to Sandplay Therapy and Symbol Work

                - practical experience, history and theory

            • Review of research and relevant literature

            • Role-play techniques to support integration

            • The use of drawing in counselling

            • Input on sandplay equipment

            • Contraindications for use of symbolic work and role-play

            • Creating mythological stories for self-understanding

            • Illustrated case studies

WORKSHOP 2  Advanced Skills, Psychological Frameworks  - 4 days

            • Psychological mechanisms activated by sandplay

            • Concepts from Jungian Psychology supporting sandplay

            • Use of mandala artwork for integration

            • Interpretation of spatial arrangements in the tray

            • Categories of tray types

            • Early research of the pioneers

            • Dr Lowenfeld’s theoretical framework

            • Skills practice and case illustrations

WORKSHOP 3 Research, Theory & Development of Practice - 3 days

            • Use of sandplay with special client populations

            • Use of Symbol Work in group programs

            • Review of Dora Kalff’s theoretical framework

            • Indications for analysis of sandpictures

            • Working with dreams in the sandtray

            • Co-transference in the sandplay session

            • Refinement of facilitation skills

WORKSHOP 4 Transpersonal Aspects, Supervision   - 3 days

            • Case presentations by students

            • Group supervision

            • Beyond the Shadow – completion trays

            • Skills development

The workshops must be completed in the order of 1 to 4.

Each day from 9am to approx 5pm; last day ends at 4pm.

FEES:

2008 Cost in Australia:

Workshop One - 5 days: $1,195  

Workshop Two - 4 days: $970    

Workshops 3 and 4 - 3 days: $745      .

Fee includes workshop manual, lunch, morning and afternoon tea.

Accommodation is available at or near all venues - book early! 

WHAT TO BRING:

Large art pad (A3 size); good crayons; biro; journal and/or notebook; an old towel.

Wear loose comfortable casual clothing.  Bring a camera to record sandplay pictures.

2008 - 2009  DATES & VENUES

WORKSHOP 1:   26 - 30 March, 08

WORKSHOP 2:   7 – 10 June, 08         

WORKSHOP 3:   12 – 14 September, 08

WORKSHOP 4:   7 – 9 November, 08

VENUE: Gumtree Gardens

99 Gumtree Rd (off Persse), Runcorn

Accommodation available at venue,

phone Jennifer: 0411 866 169.

SYDNEY  2008

WORKSHOP 1:   9 – 13 February, 2008

WORKSHOP 2:   3 – 6 May, 2008

WORKSHOP 3:   11 – 13 July, 2008

WORKSHOP 4:   7 – 9 October, 2008

VENUE: Marymount Mercy Centre

36 David Rd. Castle Hill, NSW

Accommodation and meals available at the venue.

Phone Sr Margaret Jones on

02 9651 1340 to book.

MELBOURNE  2008 - 09

WORKSHOP 1:    16 – 20 June, 08

WORKSHOP 2:    28 – 31 August, 08      

WORKSHOP 3:    28 – 30 October, 08

WORKSHOP 4:    16 – 18 January, 09

AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND  2008

WORKSHOP 1:  26 - 29 May, 2008 4 days

WORKSHOP 2:  30 Sept - 2 Oct, 2008  3 days

WORKSHOP 3:  25 - 27 November, 2008  3 days

WORKSHOP 4:  3 - 5 February, 2009  3 days