In the therapeutic journey with children, there are many creative ways to help children express emotions. Traditional talk therapy is very effective for adults but isn’t as easy for children, who may not yet have the vocabulary or interest in expressing their feelings and experiences directly.
In this blog post, I will share with you, how I incorporate creative interventions into my therapy to encourage and support children to explore their emotions.
What is Creative Therapy?
At its heart, creative therapy acknowledges that emotional expression and understanding takes different forms. For children, these forms are often best discovered through non-verbal communication. Drawing or painting a picture, modelling with clay, acting out a problem, or writing a story can relay much more about the child’s inner world than words alone. The role of creativity in therapy facilitates expression and builds emotional intelligence, coping strategies and an understanding of self.
Art As a Blank Canvas
Art offers a wonderful sensory medium for children to project their feelings and experiences. Activities like painting, sculpting, or drawing enable children to convey their emotions concretely, providing therapists with helpful insight into their internal world.
Drawing the Family
When I first start working with a child, I ask them to draw for me a picture of themselves with their family. From this one simple activity, I can learn a lot about who is included, where they place themselves in their family, and how big or small they draw themselves in comparison to their other family members. I notice what colours they use, how detailed or intense their artwork is and if they talk about their family as they create.
Role-Playing with Dress ups
Role-playing is another way for children to embody different characters or scenarios, facilitating a safe exploration of emotions and social situations. Through acting and role-play, children can express feelings they might otherwise suppress and gain perspective on their own experiences. I find that a dress-up box containing different costumes, hats, shoes and simple props is a great way to encourage this type of creative expression. By dressing up and engaging in role-playing activities, children can step into different roles and “walk in different shoes”. This helps them understand other people’s perspectives. I also use role-playing to practice situations children are finding challenging, such as making friends or asking for help in class.
Creating Self-Soothing Stories
Narrative therapy encourages children to tell their own stories, fostering a sense of agency over their experiences and emotions. This can involve writing simple stories that mirror their challenges or retelling personal experiences with the support of creative prompts such as dolls or puppets. For some children, the act of externalising their own anxieties onto a story character can be incredibly cathartic.
I once worked with a little girl who had significant school anxiety. She loved writing and drawing and in our therapy sessions, she created her own storybook about a little bird who learns to cope with their worries. The development of the storyline of the book provided her with a creative medium to externalise her thoughts and feelings onto the bird. The process of illustrating the book was both creative and soothing for her. We made her book into a physical one that was laminated. She was thrilled when it was added to the school library collection.
Through the art of storytelling, children can express and process their emotions, and rewrite their narratives to aid their healing process.
Puppets can engage a child’s imagination and encourage the expression of emotions through character play. Puppets can give children an avenue to express feelings they might find too intimidating or overwhelming to convey directly. Simple sock puppets with buttons for eyes and nose can be just as effective as more expensive store-bought ones. I frequently work with a child to make a simple puppet together. I then ask the child to put on a puppet show. It is an easy activity that assists children articulate feelings they might not otherwise tell you directly.
Incorporating Visuals
I also regularly incorporate picture books, emotion cards, and even family photos to help children tell their stories. Emotion cards help young clients who are often unable to verbalize their emotions due to developmental stages or communication difficulties. They can help children recognize and label their own feelings. They allow for a non-threatening entry point into the child’s experience and provide a shared focus for discussion. Emotion cards can be used in various engaging ways, such as sorting and matching activities. These activities not only keep the child engaged but also teach vital skills in emotional regulation and recognition. Including family photos in sessions can give insights into the child’s relationships and how they perceive their place within their family.
Dealing in Feelings emotion cards
The Positive Impact of Creative Therapy
I have found that creative interventions in therapy are not just fun and engaging for children, but they can transform the therapeutic space into one of exploration and growth. They also help build resilience as children find new ways to confront challenges, express themselves and understand their emotions.