Certificate in Essential Skills for Assessing and Treating Children and Families.

Education and training for mental health professionals

Less than 2 weeks until the start of Liana Lowenstein, MSW., RSW., CPT-S., and Greg Lubimiv's, MSW., CPT-S., vital training program Certificate in Essential Skills for Assessing and Treating Children and Families. Register now to gain the benefits of the full certificate program, or take any number of the individual modules - whatever fits your needs best!

Dates: April 3, April 26, May 13, May 24, 2019
Prerequisites: Basic child and family therapy skills.
This training is suitable for: Mental health professionals, clinicians, psychotherapists, counsellors, psychologists and social workers.

Full Certificate Overview: This 4-day certificate program is designed for practitioners who regularly work with children, adolescents, and their families and are interested in augmenting their clinical skills and therapeutic toolkit for a wide range of issues. The 4-key learning modules of this course will cover various topics including rapport-building, engaging resistant children and parents, implementing an innovative assessment model, strengthening core family therapy skills, and utilizing play and expressive arts techniques. 

Individual Module Overview: 

Module 1: What's going on? An Innovative Model for Assessing Children and Teens. The initial phase of therapy is perhaps the most important as it forms the foundation for successful ongoing work. An atmosphere of safety must be created in which the child is made to feel accepted, understood, and respected. A comprehensive assessment needs to be conducted so that an appropriate treatment plan can be developed. This course will focus on the beginning phase of therapy, namely, how to build a positive therapeutic rapport, engage resistant clients, conduct a comprehensive assessment, and develop a treatment plan. 

Module 2: Wanna Come Out and Play? The Creative Use of Games, Stories, Puppets, and Art with Children and Teens. The creative use of games, puppets, stories, and art engages children and teens in therapy and helps them to resolve their psychological difficulties.  Through this hands-on training, participants will learn how to utilize a variety of therapeutic techniques to make sessions meaningful and effective.  The activities presented can be used with a wide range of presenting problems and difficulties.  Videos and live demonstrations will be used to illustrate techniques.

Module 3: Essential Theory and Practical Skills for Child-Focused Family Therapy. Working with children in the context of their family has unique benefits. This course will present the rationale for child-focused family sessions, and will outline the major models and essential skills of family therapy.

Module 4: Creative Techniques for Child-Focused Family Therapy. The use of creative techniques in child-focused family therapy sessions provides a medium for all members to participate, and promotes positive family interaction.  This workshop will outline innovative techniques to engage, assess, and treat families.  Interventions to strengthen parenting skills will also be described and demonstrated.

Each Individual Learning Module may be taken separate from the Certificate Program as a stand-alone workshop however, all 4 modules must be completed to receive the certificate.