Trauma Awareness and Treatment Center

Clinical Sandplay

with Traumatized Children

Larry Beall, Ph.D.

1. Why Sandplay?   How Does It Work?
   1. Integrating the child’s four critical functions: Thinking, Feeling, Sensing, Behaving.
   2. Bridging child and adult worlds.
   3. Expressing the inexpressible through “picture thinking.”
   4. Directing a child’s trauma expression and resolution more effectively.
   5. Helping the child make the goals for change more self-initiated and liveable.
   6. Sand Tray as a means for keeping a growing edge.  Therapist burnout prevention.
2. Major Themes

Good vs. Evil and Magic  These two themes are particularly represented with pewter items.  Pewter is found at cheapest prices in pawn shops. Pewter is expensive.  Tell the merchant what the pewter is for and you can often get a discount.

Violence    Violent action figures are useful – soldiers, including tanks and jeeps, war scenes, etc., Star Wars figures.

Death          Dying, headstones, skeletons, mourning figures.

Nature         Trees, mountains, and other features from hobby shops are especially good; rocks, sea shells, hornet nests, etc.

Plant Life   Natural/artificial.  Show life cycle of plants from seeds, pods, blossoming, dead, etc.

Environmental Scenery   Houses, buildings, bridges, furniture, farm items.

Boundaries    Fences, walls, barriers of various kinds.

Animals     Domestic, predators, realistic, fantasy, loveable, scarey, solitary, groups.  Try to… Continue reading →