Expressive Therapy Skills Bundle

The Expressive Therapy Skills Bundle offers a unique opportunity to deepen your knowledge and practice of Expressive Therapy through a three-part experiential workshop series. Each workshop explores a different entry point into expressive work; art, sensory integration, and sandtray, while weaving together theory, practice, and lived experience.

This training is ideal for professionals in counselling, psychology, social work, education, and health who are curious about how expressive approaches can be integrated into their work with children, young people, and adults.

Across the series we will explore:

• The intersection of expressive approaches with attachment, trauma, neurobiology, and child development.

• Key skills to add to your practice. 

• The importance of multisensory engagement for therapeutic growth.

• Cultural and ethical considerations, including the respectful acknowledgement of First Nations’ expressive practices.

• The value of participating in creative and embodied activities as a way of understanding both the process and therapeutic potential of expressive work.
  

Workshop 1: Art Therapy | Workshop 2: Sensory | Workshop 3: Sandtray Skills

Workshops will include case examples, discussion, and guided experiential activities. Participants are invited to bring curiosity, openness, and willingness to explore their own responses and creativity in a supportive group learning environment.

Workshop Overview

Workshop 1: Art
Explore the use of art as a therapeutic pathway to expression, regulation, and meaning-making. Learn how image-making differs from traditional creative practices and how art can support relational attunement and safe exploration of emotions.

Workshop 2: Sensory
Delve into the sensory dimensions of expressive therapy. Understand how movement, touch, sound, and embodied play can support nervous system regulation and deepen therapeutic engagement, especially with trauma or neurodivergence.

Workshop 3: Sandtray Skills

Experience the power of sandtray work as a symbolic, sensory-rich medium. Develop foundational skills to facilitate exploration, story-making, and insight through sandtray practices.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this bundle, participants will be able to:

1. Describe what Expressive Therapy is and how it differs from general creative activities.

2. Identify the therapeutic value of art, sensory, and sandtray modalities, including how each supports neurobiological regulation.

3. Integrate expressive therapy concepts into multidisciplinary or client-centred practice.

4. Recognise and apply ethical considerations, including cultural respect and safety.

5. Appreciate the role of experiential participation and reflection in developing therapeutic skill and self-awareness.

6. Use practical strategies and techniques from art, sensory and sandtray approaches in their professional context.