No sand tray? No problem!
One of our readers has submitted this great idea for creating a sand tray alternative. Thanks, Lisa! Submit your own ideas or play therapy articles to receive gift certificates at ChildTherapyToys.
One thing therapists can do, even with the help of their child clients, is make colored rice for a rice bin instead of a sand tray by using white rice, vinegar, and food coloring. The kid can help "make" the colored rice in session (make sure ziploc bag is sealed well). Combine all colors in a bin, and use as alternative to sand. Easier to sweep or vacuum up than sand is! Kids love it!
-1 tsp vinegar
-1 cup raw white rice
-5 (or more) drops of desired food coloring
Place in baggie, shake so that color spreads, allow to dry for 48 hours or bake in the oven for 45 mins at 200 degrees.
Hope other therapists can use this! I LOVE it, as do my clients!
My name is Dr. Michelle Stangline and I teach Play Therapy and Sand Tray Therapy at Mercer University in Atlanta, Ga. I am also a school counselor and private therapist.
Play Therapy and Sand Tray Therapy truly work! I use both with my clients and students. Play Therapy and Sand Tray Therapy make me a more effective therapist and school counselor.
My clients and students truly benefit from these types of therapies. I see the healing process happen at a much faster rate. As a therapist, I can go deeper into therapy with these techniques.
My students in graduate school also see the benefits of Play Therapy and Sand Tray Therapy. They feel that they are more prepared to work with clients when they learn these valuable techniques!
Every counseling student should learn Play Therapy and Sand Tray Therapy, especially if they work with children! Please do not work with children until you have had at least one class in Play Therapy and Sand Tray Therapy. You will also want to become a lifelong learner in these techniques to become an effective therapist!
Michelle Stangline, Ed.D., L.P.C., C.P.C.S.
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I am so pleased to find this tip about using rice in a sand tray. I work in Japan at a US Navy base and have longed for sand for our sand tray at the office. We are under budget cuts again--we have been promised several times over the last two years that we could order sand! Unfortunately, it always gets cut from the budget. Now I can buy my own inexpensive rice instead of ordering sand! Thanks so much for posting!
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What a wonderful idea...sand is messy and leaves dust residue that is hard to get rid of. I will definitely try this and let you know how well I fare. Thanks!
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