Working with Children

                 Children come to counseling for behavior perceived by the guardians as problematic.  They are often times fearful, curious, anxious and angry.  They are not sure what the counselor’s role will be.  Because they have been punished for behaviors prior to counseling they fear they have come to the counselor to be punished.  Creating a rapport with the child is essential and the process of doing so is different from that of an adult.  The biggest complaints I hear from children are that they have no one to talk to and no one listens to them.  The first step in the counseling process is listening.  Active listening is more important than expert questioning (Thompson & Henderson, 2007).  Children are less likely to respond to a series of questions during the first few sessions, and a less direct approach may prove beneficial when creating a comfortable atmosphere for young clients to talk.  The following therapeutic interventions are information eliciting:

- Provide the young client with something to “fiddle” with.  Keeping hands busy takes the edge off.  A puzzle, drawing paper and markers, or a stress ball will do the trick.

- Make regular games like Jenga feeling oriented.  Every time a Jenga block is pulled the client and therapist have to answer a question or express a feeling she or he experienced during the week.

- Create feeling "cheat sheets" on index cards.  Print a complicated feeling on one side of the card, and define the feeling along with a time it was experienced on the other side.

- Create an artistic “feeling catcher," which is a dream catcher that blows in the wind.  However, each hanging feather or bead represents a time of happiness, a feeling or a time of success for the child.

- Allow the young client to create a Power Point of him or herself.  Allow the client to be as creative as s/he can with the use of the computer in order to express where s/he is now and where s/he wants to be in the future.  This is a good way to gather information and set goals.

- Using creative and expressive interventions will enhance the counselor’s ability to engage the client in the counseling process and achieve success.

Leslie S. Barry MA, LPC

Licensed Professional Counselor

Certified K-12 School Counselor

Global Career Development