Counselling Children

The definitive guide to the skills and techniques used when working with children experiencing emotional problems, this book covers all you need to know about:

• The goals for counselling children and the child-counsellor relationship
• Practice frameworks for working effectively with children
• Play therapy and the use of different media and activities
• Building self-esteem and social skills through the use of worksheets.

This fifth edition has been updated to include:

• A new chapter on technology; its influence on children and ways that technology can be used during counselling
• New content on issues of diversity and difference in counselling children
• The different contexts in which counselling children occur
• Discussion of concepts of wellbeing and resilience
• Updated references and research.

The book is supported by a new companion website that provides training materials and handouts on a range of skills for counselling children including: helping the child to tell their story sand tray work, the use of miniature animals, the use of clay, and helping the child to change thoughts and behaviour.

This highly practical guide is vital reading for counsellors, psychologists, social workers, occupational therapists, nurses and teachers working or training to work with children.

“This book is first class. It is well written and engaging and contains a wealth of exercises and activities to use with children. I love this book.”

-- Sally Riggall

Counselling Children has been an excellent resource to enhance the practice of psychotherapy with children since its first edition published in 1997. I first met the Geldards at their informative workshops in Brisbane in those early years, which thoroughly enhanced my work with children. Their published books were an added bonus. This fifth edition further supports the therapist with an addition of a Companion Website. It is a highly recommended resource, and one that I value, for every therapist working with children.

-- Dianne O′Malley

This book is a classic text for students and practitioners interested in learning more about working with children. It is easy to read and the examples given bring to life the real challenges faced in practice. At the end of each Chapter is a helpful key points box which is ideal for summarising the contents of each chapter. An essential text in the field of counselling and psychotherapy.

-- Divine Charura
The book follows a natural progression from the beginning of developing the initial relationship, through looking at different models of counselling, the skills necessary for working with children, to the use of different media – the use of play in all its various forms, visualisations, and the use of worksheets.

The real value for money comes for me with the huge number of online resources, including videos and worksheets available via the use of a code given in the book. -- Lynn Martin BACP

Dr Kathryn Geldard is now retired from clinical practice. She continues to conduct training workshops for counsellors and organisations and facilitate professional development supervision groups. Her academic career as senior lecturer in counselling at Queensland University of Technology and in the faculty of Arts and Business at the University of the Sunshine Coast (USC), Australia includes programme leadership of the Counselling programme as well as development of the postgraduate Master of Counselling degrees. She is the author of a several textbooks founded on her extensive clinical counselling background with children, young people and their families.David Geldard had extensive experience in working as a counselling psychologist with troubled children and their families. He worked in mental health and community health settings, and in private practice.  Rebecca Yin Foo is an Educational and Developmental Psychologist who is experienced in providing psychological support for children with developmental disabilities and their families at the Cerebral Palsy League. Her work has led her to take a high level of practical and academic interest in ways of working with children to promote optimal positive outcomes. She currently works in private practice in Brisbane, Australia. Prior to obtaining her honours degree in Psychology and Master’s degree in Educational and Developmental Psychology she completed a Bachelor of Medical Engineering. She has published a number of journal articles and presented conference papers nationally and internationally in relation to her studies in both Engineering and Psychology. She is the third author of the book, Counselling Children: A Practical Introduction.

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