Presented by: Janet A. Courtney, PhD, RPT-S
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Dr. Janet A. Courtney, PhD, LCSW, RPT-S, is the Founder of FirstPlay® Therapy, a TEDx speaker, Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor, and internationally recognized leader in Infant Mental Health and Infant Play Therapy. She is a past Chair of the Association for Play Therapy Ethics and Practice Committee and former President of the Florida Association for Play Therapy.

Dr. Courtney is the author and co-editor of several books including Infant Play Therapy: Foundations, Programs, Models and Practice, Healing Child and Family Trauma Through Expressive and Play Therapies, Nature-Based Play & Expressive Therapies: Interventions for Children, Teens, and Families, and Touch in Child Counseling and Play Therapy: An Ethical and Clinical Guide. She has also authored several book chapters related to a variety of play therapy topics.

She provides professional training and certification in FirstPlay® Therapy, along with workshops and presentations on Infant Play Therapy, Infant Mental Health, the Ethical and Clinical Competencies of Touch, Expressive Family Therapies, and Nature-Based Play Therapy.

Friday August 28, 2026
CE Content - 8:30 AM to 12:00 PM
Location: Virtual- Zoom

The field of infant mental health is expanding rapidly, and an increasing number of play therapists are seeking to deepen their knowledge and clinical skills to work effectively with infants and very young children within the context of the parent–infant relationship. In this training, Dr. Janet Courtney will provide a rich and engaging overview of infant mental health as it applies to the practice of play therapy. Participants will be introduced to a “working definition” of Infant Play Therapy, offering clarity and direction for clinicians entering this emerging and meaningful area of practice. Special attention will be given to understanding the infant not as an isolated client, but within a co-regulating system of the parent–infant dyad.

Grounded in current neuroscience, attachment theory, and research on touch and relational development, this session will introduce participants to FirstPlay® Infant Play Therapy—an attachment-based model that integrates nurturing touch, playful engagement through storytelling and play. This unique approach supports early attachment, co-regulation, and the deepening of relational connection through structured yet flexible playful interventions.

Participants will be guided through key elements of the FirstPlay® model, including the use of storytelling, attuned touch, and “serve and return” interactions that foster safety, connection, and emotional regulation. The training will also highlight how these interventions can be used to strengthen parental confidence and sensitivity, while supporting the infant’s developing nervous system.

The workshop will be an introduction to four core parent–infant attunement skills. These foundational skills provide a practical framework for observing, understanding, and responding to infant cues in ways that promote secure attachment. This training offers an opportunity for participants to expand their  clinical lens and deepen their understanding of early relational health within an Infant Play Therapy framework.

Learning Objectives:

1. Participants will be able to define the concept of infant mental health and identify at least two (2) ways it applies within the context of play therapy for infants and very young children.

2. Participants will be able to state a working definition of Infant Play Therapy including two (2) key differences between Infant Play Therapy and traditional play therapy with older children.

3. Participants will be able to describe the theoretical foundations and identify at least three (3) core components of FirstPlay® Infant Play Therapy, including its integration of attachment theory, nurturing touch, and neuroscience.

4. Demonstrate four (4) core parent-infant attunement skills through guided experiential practice designed to enhance co-regulation and relational connection within FirstPlay Infant Play Therapy sessions.

ORAPT/APT Member: $50

Professional Non-Member: $60

Student: $35

ORAPT is an APT Approved Provider (#99-054). 3 APT Non-Contact CEs provided*

*The Oregon Board of Licensed Social Workers (OBLSW) has placed the Association for Play Therapy (APT) on its list of Accepted Credentialing Bodies. Social workers who take courses approved by an APT Approved Provider (such as ORAPT) can count the hours toward their continuing education requirement.*

Presented By: Paris Goodyear-Brown, LCSW, RPT-S

About the Presenter: Paris Goodyear-Brown, MSSW, LCSW, RPT-S, is an internationally recognized play therapist, author, speaker, and trainer specializing in the treatment of childhood trauma, attachment challenges, anxiety, and dysregulation. She is the founder and Executive Director of the TraumaPlay Institute and Clinical Director of Nurture House in Franklin, Tennessee. Paris has more than 25 years of clinical experience working with children and families and has trained mental health professionals across the United States and around the world.

A prolific author and contributor to the play therapy literature, Paris has written numerous books and book chapters, including Trauma and Play Therapy: Helping Children Heal, Parents as Partners in Child Therapy, and Big Behaviors in Small Containers. She is the developer of the TraumaPlay™ model, an integrative, evidence-informed approach for treating children who have experienced trauma.

Paris serves as adjunct faculty at Vanderbilt University, is a Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor™, EMDR Consultant, and past President-Elect of the Tennessee Association for Play Therapy. She is a sought-after keynote speaker who has presented internationally throughout Europe, Asia, Australia, Canada, and the United States on topics including trauma, attachment, play therapy, caregiver involvement, and child development.

Friday and Saturday, March 19-20, 2027

CE Content: 9am - 5pm, both days, 12 APT Contact CEs (pending)

Location: TBD (Portland or Salem, OR)

Learn how to use this playful, components-based, evidence-informed treatment with traumatized children and teens. Paris will share her flexible, sequential model, identifying specific treatment goals with corresponding interventions. She will differentiate between trauma treatment goals that are can be accomplished through non-directive methods and goals that are best served by integrating parents as partners, utilizing somatic grounding techniques, cognitive-behavioral play therapy interventions, expressive therapy techniques, dyadic work, and playful ways to complete trauma narrative work. Participants will leave with an expanded toolkit of interventions and a revived sense of excitement about the process. Come prepared to play!

Learning Objectives:

1. List all seven primary components of TraumaPlay™

2. List the three roles of the TraumaPlay™ Therapist

3. Describe several self-directed ways in which children use the playroom to increase their sense of safety and security in play therapy.

4. List three therapist-directed activities for enhancing safety and security in play therapy.

5.  Describe four play therapy interventions that assess and augment coping.

6. Describe three play therapy interventions that decrease a child’s sense of physiological arousal.

7. Describe six play therapy interventions that help parents co-regulate their children more effectively.

8. Explain the two developmental foundations discussed in the Parents as Partners component of the model.

9. List three play therapy interventions that invite disclosure in TraumaPlay™.

10. List five play therapy interventions that prompt coherent narrative building in TraumaPlay™.

11. List four prop-based play therapy interventions that help integrate somatic memories during coherent narrative building.

12. Explain several play therapy techniques that assist clients in challenging and restructuring cognitive distortions.

ORAPT/APT Member: $300

Professional Non-Member: $350

Student: $220

ORAPT is an APT Approved Provider (#99-054). 12 APT Contact CEs provided (pending)*

*The Oregon Board of Licensed Social Workers (OBLSW) has placed the Association for Play Therapy (APT) on its list of Accepted Credentialing Bodies. Social workers who take courses approved by an APT Approved Provider (such as ORAPT) can count the hours toward their continuing education requirement.*