Welcome to Alcove Child and Youth Resources
As I’ve written in previous posts, I like to take time early in my work with a child or young person to talk about emotions, to assess what the child’s emotional awareness is, her ability to express a wide range of emotions, and how she copes with various emotions. Having a sense of a child’s emotional intelligence at the start …
I love using feeling charts with my therapy clients. For almost every kind of presenting issue, some kind of emotion chart will usually make an appearance within the first session or two when I am working with a child. Using this tool helps me assess and improve a child’s emotional awareness and vocabulary, which are important aspects of a child’s …
As I shared in a previous post on an activity called “A Feeling for All Seasons”, I use emotion charts with most of my child and some of my teen clients. I find they help kids to identify and verbally express their emotions, learn to recognize and empathize with others’ emotions, and as a result help children learn how to …
If you are working with small children in counselling or in a classroom setting, you are going to need more than worksheets and conversation skills – you’re going to need some toys. No 6 year-old wants to just sit around and talk about their problems – and often times younger kids don’t have the ability to do so, even if …
No matter our age, we all need to feel safe. Safety is so vital for our lives that it’s at the very base of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, only one step up from physiological needs like food and shelter. After we are fed and clothed and housed, we need to feel safe before we are able to pursue other needs …
One of the most common problems clients will bring to therapy is anxiety. Estimated to afflict as much as 33.7% of the population at some point in life, an anxiety disorder can be a debilitating issue to endure. Cognitive behavioural therapy continues to be the standard approach for working with people with anxiety disorders. In this model, clients learn coping …
Today’s post is not a therapy or educational resource – but it is a positive reinforcement tool to help very young children learn bathroom skills. We are working to potty train a toddler in our house at the moment. While we have been using lots of positive reinforcement in the form of praise, she has been very sporadic in her …
Summer is winding down! Cue the sweaters, the scarves, the fuzzy socks, and of course the Back-to-School rush. While I am not exactly keen on shorter, cooler days, the changing of seasons does provide a great opportunity to bring some seasonal touches into the classroom or counselling office. One way to do that is with some Fall-themed feeling faces. I …
Clients with a history of severe trauma often need help overcoming symptoms of post-traumatic stress that can arise unexpectedly and overwhelm them. Once triggered, these individuals can feel that they are reliving a traumatic event all over again. They may experience flashbacks to the traumatic event, have nightmares, panic, or dissociate from the present moment and their own bodies, as …
Finding items to re-purpose is one creative and cost-effective way to come up with new therapy activities, so I’m always on the lookout for something that I can take and put to new use. During some spring (or maybe last fall) cleaning, I came across a small seashell collection from my childhood that I had been storing in my basement …
