Participant Feedback
The workshop was really experiential and helped me see that our unconscious is ready to play when given an opportunity. Thank Peter for the insightful experience and understanding of Gestalt / Oaklander's way of working.
A great insight into Gestalt play therapy, I will add it to my toolbelt.
Great workshop. Great presenter. Thanks!
Peter Mortola was incredible. I was fortunate enough to be chosen to do an activity with him , the process was amazing and I look forward to using this in my sessions with my clients.
Course Description
3 hour live, online course
In this workshop, you can learn the value of a playful and creative approach to therapy, based on the work of Dr. Violet Oaklander. See demonstrated through both theory and practice how a playful and creative approach to therapy can help enliven, sharpen, and make more authentic the therapeutic encounter, both between the therapist and the client, as well as between the client and the sometimes surprising aspects of the self that are discovered through play and art: Paradoxically, play and art can make therapy more real. In addition to theory and research, we will focus in this workshop on a set of drawings that can be used with clients of all ages to enhance therapeutic contact and allow relevant content to emerge and be explored in a way that provides new perspectives and possibilities.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course you will have an opportunity to:
- Deepen your understanding of the Oaklander approach to therapy with children, adolescents and adults
- Gain understanding of how to use drawings in the therapeutic process
- Engage in a hands-on learning opportunity to explore the use of drawings in therapy and counseling
Workshop Facilitator - Peter Mortola, Ph.D. Professor in Counseling, Therapy and School Psychology
| 
| | Peter Mortola, Ph.D. is a Professor in the Counseling, Therapy and School Psychology Department at Lewis and Clark College's Graduate School of Education and Counseling, Portland, Oregan, USA. He is the author of Windowframes: Learning the art of Gestalt play therapy the Oaklander way (Routledge/Gestaltpress, 2006), the culmination of 10 years of inquiry and research on Violet Oaklander’s methods of both child therapy and adult training. Windowframes has been translated into German, Spanish, Romanian, Italian and Korean. He is also the co-author of BAM! Boys Advocacy and Mentoring: A leader’s guide to facilitating strength-based groups for boys (Routledge, 2008), and The Bear Inside (19th Avenue Press, with Illustrator Mark Molchan), a children's book about regulating strong emotions. The Bear Inside has been translated into Spanish, Bulgarian, Russian, and Sinhala language versions. For 15 years, he has also facilitated a partnership between Lewis & Clark College and David Douglas School District in which graduate students have served over 1500 sixth-grade students in the small group counseling setting. |
Who Should Attend?
This workshop will be suitable for any professional working with boys and men in either educational or counselling settings.
Please note, this is a LIVE and INTERACTIVE training event. We don't record this.
Date and Time
Live only online course will be run on:
19th August 2025, 9am - 12pm AEST
(18th August 2025, 4pm - 7pm PDT)
or
4th November 2025, 9am - 12pm AEDT
(3rd November 2025, 2pm - 5pm PST)
Attending from interstate or internationally?
You can use this time converter to check the exact day and time of this training for your location.
Training Details
Included in the training price:
- 3 hours live, online training
- Access to slides and link to create Certificate of Attendance will be emailed to you upon completion of course evaluation
- GST
Training Cost
SPECIAL Price $200
Work Paying?
Lucky you!
Send us an email requesting an invoice via the contact page with your name, the dates and name of course/courses you'd like to do and the name of your organisation who you want us to invoice and we will send you an organisational invoice and a registration form.
