Stacey Horan Play Therapy

18/06/2025

"The bond that a caregiver establishes with a child is really important for their development. In fact, we believe that a secure infant attachment is one of the most important factors in child development. This bond helps both the child and the caregiver in many ways. It is the building block to many social, emotional, behavioural and cognitive skills. In this article we will explain how a good child-caregiver bond shapes the developing brain. We will describe what a caregiver needs to do in order to create healthy attachment bonds. There are practical games and activities that you can integrate into your home or school to assist in this process..."

28/03/2025

Engaging in nurturing play, like caring for dolls, stuffed animals, or role playing as caregivers, helps boys develop empathy, compassion, and the ability to understand others' needs and feelings. It's actually an important aspect of their emotional and social development.

When boys engage in such play, they learn vital skills that will help in them in relationships, emotional intelligence, and even in their future roles as parents, friends, or colleagues.

It can also challenge traditional gender norms by showing that nurturing qualities are not confined to any one gender ♀️♂️

28/03/2025

🚫 Anti-Bullying Training for Parents of Children in Primary School
📅 Virtual Sessions – April 2025

🟦 A free online session provided by the National Parents Council (NPC)

This training will help you:
✅ Support your child if they are experiencing or witnessing bullying
✅ Understand how bullying is addressed in schools
✅ Learn about the Anti-Bullying Procedures for Primary Schools

📌 These sessions are interactive and online – places are limited and will be allocated on a first come, first served basis.

🖊️ Register now:
👉 https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Anti_Bullying_April2025

🕰️ Choose your preferred date and time:

🟨 Tuesday 1st April – 10am or 7:30pm

🟨 Wednesday 2nd April – 10am or 7:30pm

🟨 Thursday 3rd April – 10am or 7:30pm

👥 Open to all parents/guardians of primary school children.

11/02/2025

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Graphic credit:

11/02/2025

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Newborns are expert, super keen observers of adult lives. It’s like they’re on apprenticeship. They’re watching our faces, assessing our mood and gauging whether they’re safe

07/02/2025

Many conditions can co-occur and/or resemble trauma, especially in children, making formal diagnostic evaluations critical for accurate, appropriate, and effective treatment planning.

27/01/2025

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Two dinosaur fans starting work with Niki this week - adapting the EMOTIONS AND MY BRAIN resource pack to adapt to young people's interests is easy to do.

Dinosaur breed was chosen by one child. More resources in the pack shall be adapted.

IN THE RESOURCE STORE

EMOTIONS and MY BRAIN

This extensive resource pack based on Dan Siegel’s Upstairs and Downstairs Brain
helps and educates children and young people on the concept of the upstairs and downstairs brain can help them recognise how their own brain functions and develop strategies for self-regulation and emotional intelligence.
The pack comprises explainers, emotions scale resources, practical activities including upstairs and downstairs brain choices (behaviours), stress response, amygdala hijack, explainers for both adults and young people and activities to consolidate learning around parts of the brain and functions. Also includes 5 skin tone range of emotions.

Varying resources to suit ages 6-16yrs. Would compliment our emotions based interventions.

Electronic download available at

https://thecontentedchild.co.uk/product/emotions-and-my-brain-based-on-dan-siegels-upstairs-and-downstairs-brain/

17/01/2025

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24/12/2024

Thank you to the parents who trusted me to support their child this year 🙏🏼

I do my utmost best every week to provide a safe and caring environment for your child - to give them the opportunity to express themselves fully, and at their own pace, with the assurance that they will be understood and accepted ❤️

I am beyond grateful that I get to spend time with your child 🦋 ✨

Although at times, Play Therapy can be challenging for every one involved - it requires time and effort, and uncomfortable feelings can be evoked.
But...your childs mental health is a priority...your mental health is a priority.
"Help" is such a little word, and yet it is so brave, sometimes we need to ask for it 🕯️

I want to wish you all a very Happy Christmas ⛄ 🎁 🎅🏼🎄 May it be filled with light, peace and joy!!

Remember - a child is going to remember who was there, not what you spend on them. Children outgrow toys and outfits, but they never outgrow time and love 💖

I look forward to welcoming you all back in 2025 ⭐

"Play matters because people matter. It reminds us of our interdependence and gives us a chance to really see other people. And in turn, to be really and truly seen" - Jill Vialet.

05/12/2024

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NeuroWild 💕
•
It fills me with such joy to watch our kids happy stim.

Seeing happy jumps, spins, flaps.
Joyful singing, humming, movements.

It doesn’t matter if it looks different.
It doesn’t matter if it falls outside the realm of neuronormativity.

Unless a stim is harmful, you don’t need to redirect it.
Our stims are important. They’re useful.

Stopping a kid who is quietly stimming in a classroom is going to reduce their capacity to engage in learning. That’s an outcome that no one wants.

Rather that trying to stop the stimming, and rather than labeling it as ‘distracting’, teachers can help the whole class understand that different people learn in different ways.

For plenty of us, stimming helps us learn.

Let’s normalise that.
Yes?

Em 🌈

09/10/2024

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Children try to communicate with us in the best way they know how. When kids have hard days and are struggling with emotions, it’s difficult for them to be direct and talk with us about it.

It takes life experiences and practice to become comfortable understanding and discussing emotions.

Because getting the words out might be challenging, children will often want to create a familiar and safe environment that they can share with us through play.

Connecting with us through play can help make it easier for kids to open up and it offers an easy opportunity for us to ask about their day or work it into play.

Play is so healing and restorative. Co-experiencing delight is massively regulating for children. Being in the moment and putting the To-Do List aside is a major stress reducer for adults too! And play helps the parent-child bond grow strong.

So the next time your child wants to play, consider the many benefits of spending this time with your little one. 🤩

25/09/2024

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Credit: Karen Young - Hey Sigmund