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Play is the center of a child’s universe—bring it to the center of your practice!

Children's trauma shows up in complex ways — dissociative behaviors, emotional numbing, self-harm, fear —often difficult to recognize and even harder to address.

At the 2025 Play Therapy Conference, you’ll gain a therapeutic toolbox filled with ready-to-apply techniques to break down emotional barriers, build resilience, strengthen attachments, and foster family bonds helping young clients face future challenges with confidence and strength.

Play therapy will ignite transformation—even in your most difficult cases!

This inspiring event features the brightest minds in the field, including keynote speaker Stephen Porges, the visionary behind Polyvagal Theory, alongside an all-star panel of play therapists including:

  • Clair Mellenthin, creator of Attachment-Centered Play Therapy
  • Paris Goodyear-Brown, creator of TraumaPlay™
  • Carmen Jimenez-Pride, creator of Diversity in Play Therapy
  • Jessica Stone, creator of the Virtual Sandtray App®©
  • and so many more!

Join us for 2.5 days to experience the unmatched power of Play Therapy—the most trusted approach for helping children heal and thrive. Register now!

2025 Play Therapy Conference

Bridging a Transformative Pathway from Trauma to Healing with Children & Families
June 4–6, 2025
$1,549.87 Value... Just $249.99 Today – Stunning Savings!
Don't wait – early bird pricing ends soon!
Your registration is 100% risk-free
Attend Live Online
Includes up to 25.5 CE Hours (19.5 Live and 6 On-Demand)
APT Approved Provider 05-165

Click here for Credit hours breakdown
Learn On-Demand
Includes up to 25.5 Self-Study CE Hours
CE details available 4–6 weeks after the event

We've all witnessed a young client triggered by trauma—angry, anxious, depressed, or impulsive, caught in a spiral of self-criticism and distress.

In moments, they can become overwhelmed, struggling to find calm and regulation.

As therapists, are you equipped with the essential tools to guide them back to safety, stability, and well-being?

By joining us at the Play Therapy Conference you'll gain:
  • Interventions specifically crafted to address trauma-driven emotional and behavioral responses in young clients, helping them achieve stability and resilience.
  • Key signs of dissociation and how underlying trauma can intensify symptoms like disconnection, avoidance, and heightened reactivity.
  • Approaches that honor unique family structures, ensuring every child and caregiver feel seen, supported, and empowered.
  • Proven methods like bibliotherapy, backstory exploration, and Theraplay to create safe spaces for adopted children, enhancing your understanding of their unique experiences and challenges.
  • Practical play therapy techniques paired with thorough assessment tools to help children process and respond to medical trauma.
  • ...and so much more!
Included in your all-access pass:
  • 10 expertly crafted sessions packed with interventions and approaches designed to meet the demands of modern practice broadcast live over 2.5 days
  • 30-days of unlimited replays to watch at your convenience
  • Get your questions answered live from our faculty of leading play therapy experts
  • Up to 25.5 CE hours included with your registration (up to 19.5 live and up to 6 self-study hours)
  • Up to 25.5 Non-Contact Play Therapy Credit Hours
  • Comprehensive manuals, slides, client handouts and resources
  • AND we're giving you complete unlimited access to 3 on-demand sessions

2025 Play Therapy Conference

Bridging a Transformative Pathway from Trauma to Healing with Children & Families
June 4–6, 2025
$1,549.87 Value... Just $249.99 Today – Stunning Savings!
Don't wait – early bird pricing ends soon!
Your registration is 100% risk-free
Attend Live Online
Includes up to 25.5 CE Hours (19.5 Live and 6 On-Demand)
APT Approved Provider 05-165

Click here for Credit hours breakdown
Learn On-Demand
Includes up to 25.5 Self-Study CE Hours
CE details available 4–6 weeks after the event
WHAT'S NEW AND WHAT'S NEXT IN PLAY THERAPY
Day 1 | Wednesday, June 4, 2025
8:30 AM– 4:50 PM Central Time
Keynote presenter, Dr. Stephen Porges, and Clair Mellenthin LCSW, RPT-S™
Polyvagal Meets Attachment-Centered Play Therapy: Engaging the Nervous System for Resilient and Socially Connected Children & Teens
Keynote presenter, Dr. Stephen Porges | Click here for information about Stephen Porges
Clair Mellenthin LCSW, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Clair Mellenthin

Join Dr. Porges and Clair, where you'll gain essential insights into recognizing and adjusting biobehavioral states.

You'll learn to:
  • Shift from Stimulus-Response to S-O-R emphasizing how a child's autonomic state mediates response to stimuli
  • Guide children into social engagement to support therapy and peer connection
  • Help move a child toward regulation with grounding techniques, sensory tools, and routines

Carmen Jimenez-Pride, LCSW, RPT-S™, ICST-P, and Catherine Denham, LCSW, RPT-S™
Empowering Children Facing Cultural Trauma: Play Therapy Approaches to Build Resilience and Inspire Bravery
Carmen Jimenez-Pride, LCSW, RPT-S™, ICST-P | Click here for information about Carmen Jimenez Pride
Catherine Denham, LCSW, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Catherine Denham

Join Carmen and Catherine as they deliver a powerful message on practicing cultural humility in the playroom, emphasizing its crucial role in creating a safe and inclusive therapeutic environment for all children and families.

You'll explore principles from play therapy, Internal Family Systems (IFS), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), and sandtray therapy, gaining insights into the unique impacts of cultural trauma on children of color.


Break – 12:10-12:40 Central Time

Liliana Baylon, LMFT-S, RPT-S™, EMDRIA Approved Consultant, and Maria Laquerre-Diego, LMFT-S, RPT-S™
Playful Curiosity for Building Resilience: 5 Essential Domains in Assessing Medical Trauma with Play Therapy
Liliana Baylon, LMFT-S, RPT-S™, EMDRIA Approved Consultant | Click here for information about Liliana Baylon
Maria Laquerre-Diego, LMFT-S, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Maria Laquerre-Diego

In this engaging session, experts Liliana and Maria unveil critical assessment tools designed to address the unique challenges of medical trauma in children.

You'll learn to:
  • Assess five critical domains of play therapy
  • Integrate assessments into play therapy
  • Recognize and address trauma responses in play therapy

Paris Goodyear-Brown, LCSW, RPT-S™
Advancing Trauma Treatment in Play Therapy: Integrating Parts Work for Profound Healing with TraumaPlay™
Paris Goodyear-Brown, LCSW, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Paris Goodyear-Brown
In this session Paris shows how parts work guides children from trauma's fragmentation to resilience, integrating each part into a stronger, unified self. You'll learn:
  • Critical periods in parts development
  • Narrative splintering
  • Countertransference
  • Dynamics between parent and therapist parts
You'll be equipped with impactful play therapy interventions designed to invite powerful integration of these parts.

Day 2 | Thursday, June 5, 2025
8:30 AM– 5:20 PM Central Time
Clair Mellenthin, LCSW, RPT-S™, and Jessica Stone, PhD, RPT-S™
Intergenerational Healing in Play Therapy: Rebuilding Family Bonds through Systemic Trauma and Attachment
Clair Mellenthin, LCSW, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Clair Mellenthin
Jessica Stone, PhD, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Jessica Stone

Clair and Jessica share core concepts behind systemic trauma and generational patterns, revealing how these forces shape our young clients' behaviors and relationships.

In this session you'll get:
  • Hands-on play therapy activity designed for immediate application in your practice
  • Techniques for involving family members effectively while respecting client autonomy
  • Tools to work through relational trauma and strengthen family bonds

Sueann Kenney-Noziska, MSW, LCSW, RPT-S™
The Intersection of Sexual Trauma and Play Therapy: Interventions for Treating the Complexities of Abuse
Sueann Kenney-Noziska, MSW, LCSW, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Sueann Kenney-Noziska

Join Sueann as she shares how a trauma-informed cognitive behavioral therapy (CBPT) lens equips you with the tools and knowledge of short- and long-term effects of childhood sexual trauma.


Break – 12:40-1:10 Central Time

Ann Beckley-Forest, LCSW, RPT-S™, and Annie Monaco, LCSW, RPT-S™
Transforming Fragmented Parts through Play Therapy for Dissociative Children & Youth
Ann Beckley-Forest, LCSW, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Ann Beckley-Forest
Annie Monaco, LCSW, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Annie Monaco

Join Annie and Ann, experts in EMDR, attachment, and dissociation, as they get to the heart of how fragmentation of the self can be recognized through our case examples within a play therapy framework. They'll offer practical play therapy tools, including Gestalt play therapy and other prescriptive play therapy invitations to move the child towards healing. These play therapy-based techniques help children describe their inner life, including fragmented self-states and lay the groundwork for trauma processing.


Chaitra Wirta-Leiker, PsyD, and Sabra Starnes, LCSW, RPT-S™
Play Therapy for Adoptive Children and Families: Navigating the Seven Core Issues in Adoption to Create Healthy Self-Expression, Attachment, and Trauma Healing

Join Chaitra, an international/transracial adoptee and adoptive parent, alongside Sabra, a transracial adoptee and adoptive parent with over 24 years of experience as an adoption therapist, as they reveal how different types of adoption and the 7 core issues of adoption shape session dynamics and profoundly influence children's self-expression.


Day 3 | Friday, June 6, 2025
8:30 AM– 12:40 PM Central Time
Holly Willard, LCSW, RPT-S™, and Clair Mellenthin, LCSW, RPT-S™
Play Therapy with the Modern Family: Healing Trauma, Honoring Identity, and Strengthening Resilience Across Diverse Dynamics
Holly Willard, LCSW, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Holly Willard
Clair Mellenthin, LCSW, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Clair Mellenthin
Join Clair and Holly to explore innovative play therapy techniques tailored for modern families experiencing challenges such as:
  • Navigating identity and belonging in biracial and LGBTQ+ families
  • Addressing trauma and loss in single-parent or grandparent-led households
  • Fostering attachment and communication skills among diverse family structures

Georgie Wisen-Vincent, LMFT RPT-S™
The Way of Play: A Neuro-Filial Approach to Repair Parent-Child Bonds and Build Trauma Resilience in Play Therapy
Georgie Wisen-Vincent, LMFT RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Georgie Wisen-Vincent

Join Georgie Wisen-Vincent, co-author of upcoming The Way of Play (with Dr. Tina Payne Bryson) for an innovative approach to strengthening parent-child relationships through play therapy, trauma resilience, and brain development.

In this groundbreaking session Georgie equips you with play therapy strategies to support young clients and families facing stress, dysregulation, chaos and conflict.


2025 Play Therapy Conference

Bridging a Transformative Pathway from Trauma to Healing with Children & Families
June 4–6, 2025
$1,549.87 Value... Just $249.99 Today – Stunning Savings!
Don't wait – early bird pricing ends soon!
Your registration is 100% risk-free
Attend Live Online
Includes up to 25.5 CE Hours (19.5 Live and 6 On-Demand)
APT Approved Provider 05-165

Click here for Credit hours breakdown
Learn On-Demand
Includes up to 25.5 Self-Study CE Hours
CE details available 4–6 weeks after the event
Register now to unlock unlimited access to three exclusive pre-recorded sessions
Affirming Play Therapy Approaches: The Agent of Change for Neurodivergent Kids
Robert Jason Grant, EDD, LPC, NCC, RPT-S™ | Click here for information about Robert Jason Grant
Dr. Grant, creator of AutPlay Therapy, will share his 20+ years of experience in the field to explain the concepts of neurodiversity, ableism, neurodivergence, and how to be neurodiversity affirming.

Integrating ShadowPlay in Play Therapy: A Creative Path to Safe Self-Expression for Teens
Cherie L. Spehar, LCSW, RPT-S™, CTRC-C | Click here for information about Cherie Spehar

Join Cherie to discover ShadowPlay™—an ethical, engaging framework that uses expressive arts and play therapy to help teens safely explore and integrate shadow aspects.

You'll learn:
  • A creative, ethical framework for guiding teens in shadow exploration in play therapy
  • Depth-psychology insights and ethical considerations in shadow work
  • Play therapy strategies that foster autonomy and safety in and self-exploration

Polyvagal and Play Therapy: Inside Out Approaches for Sensory & Somatic Regulation
Dora Henderson, LMHC, RPT-S™, CST | Click here for information about Dora Henderson
Join Dora to integrate neuroscience in a playful, child-friendly way through:
  • Healing the Trauma Brain - Rewiring Broken Connections
  • Polyvagal Theory & The Vagus Nerve Superhighway
  • Somatic & Sensory Strategies in Play Therapy
Walk away with tools to create in your school, home or office.

Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! All participants will be given 30 days' access to the recordings following the live event.
Continuing education credit is provided for psychologists, social workers, mental health counselors, and marriage and family therapists. You must attend live in order to earn CE hours for the live sessions. Earn up to 25.5 CE Hours (19.5 Live and 17 Self-Study) at the very low price of $249.99.

Attendees are encouraged to contact their local crediting agencies to confirm the acceptance and reciprocity of credit.
Yes! Just register for our fully on-demand version of this conference, which will be available 4-6 weeks after the live event dates of June 4–6, 2025. You'll get unlimited access to the training and will be able to earn self-study CE hours! Click here to learn more and register to earn CE on your own schedule.
Yes! You get unlimited replay access for 30 days after the training. Replays will be available within the week after the training ends and will be in the same place where the live sessions took place in your account portal.
Open the door to an inspirational and dynamic conference that'll bring out the kid in all of us!

Together, let's transform the narrative of trauma into a journey of resilience, healing, and hope!

2025 Play Therapy Conference

Bridging a Transformative Pathway from Trauma to Healing with Children & Families
June 4–6, 2025
$1,549.87 Value... Just $249.99 Today – Stunning Savings!
Don't wait – early bird pricing ends soon!
Your registration is 100% risk-free
Attend Live Online
Includes up to 25.5 CE Hours (19.5 Live and 6 On-Demand)
APT Approved Provider 05-165

Click here for Credit hours breakdown
Learn On-Demand
Includes up to 25.5 Self-Study CE Hours
CE details available 4–6 weeks after the event
100% Satisfaction Guarantee
Register for this intensive conference without risk. If you're not completely satisfied, give us a call at 800-844-8260. We're that confident you'll find this learning experience to be all that's promised and more than you expected.
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NOTE: No additional discounts or coupons may be applied to this course.
SUM002157 • © PESI Inc. • All rights reserved • Email: PlayTherapy@pesi.com • Phone: 800-844-8260 • FAQ: www.pesi.com/faq
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