Sandtray Activity

• Sandtray Activity

Resources•

Attributes and Evaluation of Discussion Contributions.

• Professional Communications and Writing Guide.

There are three parts to this discussion. The first two parts are the activity in which you will participate, and the third part is writing the discussion post. You will need to set aside at least 30 minutes and find a private space with a table to conduct this activity.

Part 1: Prepare Materials and Space

You will need:

• 10 to 20 small objects from nature, such as stones, feathers, and sticks; and little play objects of people, animals, or toys.

• A napkin.

• Paper and a writing instrument.

Part 2: Depth Work Using Symbols

• Place the objects within easy reach on the table.

• Place a napkin in front of you on the table.

• Let your fingers do the walking and choose from the objects in front of you to create a picture. Place the objects on the napkin where you are inclined to place them.

• Sit with this version of a sandtray and notice how you feel, what you are thinking, and how you are making meaning of this picture. Write your reflections down.

• Speaking from the voice of either Jungian or psychoanalytic theory, analyze your picture.

• Sit with this version of a sandtray and notice how you feel, what you are thinking, and how you are making meaning of this picture. Write your reflections down.

• Speaking from the voice of either Jungian or psychoanalytic theory, analyze your picture.

o From a Jungian perspective, simply ask yourself, “What is rising out of my unconscious that seeks to be expressed?”

o From the analytic position, you may wish to consider what psychosexual stage appears to be most expressed or fixated, and how this may be expressed in behaviors and symptoms in your life.

• If you have the capability, take a digital picture of your napkin sandtray.

Remember that this is a learning activity and not therapy. Share your thoughts about this activity in your post from the perspective of what you learned about the theory, not what you learned about yourself. Share only what you feel safe sharing. If possible, include the digital picture of your napkin sandtray.

Readings

In the Capella Library, read:

• Bainum, Schneider, and Stone’s 2006 article, “An Adlerian Model for Sandtray Therapy,” from The Journal of Individual Psychology, volume 62, issue, 1, pages 36–46.

• Midgley and Target’s 2006 chapter, “Recollections of Being in Child Psychoanalysis: A Qualitative Study of a Long-term Follow-up Project,” in R. A. King, P. B. Neubauer, & S. Abrams (Eds.), Psychoanalytic Study of the Child [Ebrary version], volume 60, pages 157–177.

• Robson’s 2008 article, “The Driver Whose Heart was Full of Sand: Leigh’s Story – A Play Therapy Case Study of a Bereaved Child,” from British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, volume 36, issue 1, pages 71–80.

• Taylor’s 2009 article, “Sandtray and Solution-focused Therapy,” in International Journal of Play Therapy, volume 18, issue 1, pages 56–68.

• Flahive and Ray’s 2007 article, “Effect of Group Sandtray Therapy with Preadolescents,” in Journal for Specialists in Group Work, volume 32, issue 4, pages 362–382.

At the Jungian Analysis website, read:

• Kurtz’s 2009 article, “Sandplay in Jungian Analysis.”

Web Search

Conduct an Internet search on the topic of sandtray and sandplay therapy. You will use the information to construct the foundation for discussions in this unit and most likely throughout the remainder of the course. It is recommended that you visit the following Web sites:

• Sandplay Therapists of America.

• International Society for Sandplay Therapy.

• Axline, V. M. (1964). Dibs in search of self. New York, NY: Ballantine. ISBN: 9780345339256.

Axline, V. M. (2002). Play therapy. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone. ISBN: 9780443040610.

Badenoch, B. (2008). Being a brain-wise therapist: A practical guide to interpersonal neurobiology. New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company. ISBN: 9780393705546.

Cattanach, A. (2003). Introduction to play therapy. New York, NY: Routledge. ISBN: 9781583912485.

Elkind, D. (2007). The power of play: Learning what comes naturally. Philadelphia, PA: Da Capo Books. ISBN: 9780738211107.