Newton Play Therapy

09/17/2025

A recent study found watching Studio Ghibli movies and playing 'The Legend of Zelda' might actually help young people feel happier and navigate stress. Link in the first comment to learn more.

08/23/2025

Share from The Occuplaytional Therapist & Mona Delahooke, Ph.D. 💕
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This goes back to assuming that children do everything that they do because they want to do it — that if they’re not doing something, it’s the *motivation* that they’re lacking, rather than the *skills* that they’re lacking.

Reasoning with them is trying to motivate them.
Rewarding them is trying to motivate them.
Offering incentives is trying to motivate them.
Coercion (like punishment) is trying to motivate them.

And if they can’t do the thing, then none of it will make any difference: because they can’t do the thing. No one could reason, reward, incentivize, or coerce you into being able to do something that you literally cannot do, either.

The problem is that to accept that a child literally cannot do something (maybe at that time, maybe in that moment, maybe forever, maybe “yet”, maybe in that environment or in those circumstances or for that person…) is a massive lens shift for most adults. Because it’s easier for most adults to believe that children are just being [insert negative descriptor here] rather than to believe that they actually can’t do something on a timeline the adult has deemed appropriate.

[Image description: A dark blue background with white text over it which reads, “No matter how much you try to reason, reward, or offer incentives, you can’t coerce or even teach a child to have control over something they can’t actually control.” The quote is by Mona Delahooke, while the image itself is by and it is labelled “Brain-Body Parenting”. End description.]

06/20/2025

Responsive Parenting Inspirations 💗

12/09/2024

Rae Pica Keynotes & Consulting 💜

11/26/2024

🌟 Free Pop Up Group for Parents 🌟

https://newtonplaytherapy.com/group-offerings -aa1f-436e-893c-c0bdf9f37397

11/18/2024

Learning and Exploring Through Play 💕

10/25/2024

Newton Play Therapy currently has open daytime spots for new clients (ages 7-12); visit www.newtonplaytherapy.com for more information and to schedule an online intake.

A Playful Approach to Therapy with Children.

10/25/2024

We currently have open daytime spots for new clients (ages 7-12); visit www.newtonplaytherapy.com for more information and to schedule an online intake.

A Playful Approach to Therapy with Children.

10/22/2024

🌟 New Group Starting 11/14 🌟