A Therapist's Guide to Child Development: The Extraordinarily Normal Years

by Dee C. Ray (Editor)

Overview

A Therapist's Guide to Child Development gives therapists and counselors the basics they need to understand their clients in the context of development and to explain development to parents.

The chapters take the reader through the various physical, social, and identity developments occurring at each age, explaining how each stage of development is closely linked to mental health and how that is revealed in therapy. This ideal guide for students, as well as early and experienced professionals, will also give readers the tools to communicate successfully with the child’s guardians or teachers, including easy-to-read handouts that detail what kind of behaviors are not cause for concern and which behaviors mean it’s time to seek help. In the new edition, each chapter also includes new sections on brain development and cultural identity development, as well as updates on child development in the age of technology.

As an aid to practitioners, this book matches developmental ages with appropriate, evidence-based mental health interventions.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781040401101
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	09/15/2025
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	242

About the Author

Dee C. Ray, PhD, LPC-S, NCC, RPT-S, is Regents Professor and director emeritus of the Center for Play Therapy at the University of North Texas. She is co-owner and play therapist at EmpathyWell, PLLC, in Highland Village, Texas.

Table of Contents

Part 1: Introduction 1. An Overview of Child Development 2. Developmentally Appropriate Interventions Part 2: Early Childhood 3. The Extraordinary Beginning Years: Birth to 2 Years Old 4. The Extraordinary 3-Year Old 5. The Extraordinary 4-Year Old Part 3: Middle Childhood 6. The Extraordinary 5-Year Old 7. The Extraordinary 6-Year Old 8. The Extraordinary 7-Year Old 9. The Extraordinary 8-Year Old Part 4: Late Childhood 10. The Extraordinary 9-Year Old 11. The Extraordinary 10-Year Old 12. The Extraordinary 11-Year Old 13. The Extraordinary 12-Year Old Part 5: Therapist Resources 14. Age-to-Age Series Index

Editorial Reviews

Praise for the first edition:

"What a wonderful new resource for play therapists and others who work with children. It is truly ‘extraordinary’! Dr. Ray and her coauthors have found a very usable, focused way to describe the development of each childhood year. This is unusually detailed, very helpful, and insightful! The handouts for parents are an added plus and add to making this book a winner! And a new supplementary textbook for my classes!

Linda Homeyer, PhD, LPCS, RPTS, professor, Texas State University; director, Door of Hope Counseling Center, New Braunfels, Texas

"A Therapist's Guide to Child Development is an essential addition to the play therapy literature. This edited book does a masterful job of integrating the classic works in child development with the work of play therapists. The structure of the book is makes it an easy-to-read resource, as the chapters are organized by age, and each chapter has the same sections. This book is a must have for play therapists, parents of young children, and students."

Phyllis Post, PhD, LPCS, RPT, professor of counseling and director of the Multicultural Play Therapy Center, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

"Dr. Ray's book is a practical resource that all child counselors and counselors-in-training should own! Dr. Ray integrates and applies developmental theories, clinical expertise, and brain research to developmentally appropriate work with children birth to 12. This text will be one that child therapists will reference again and again in their work with children, parents, and teachers."

April Schottelkorb, PhD, LPC, RPT-S, associate professor of counselor education and director of the Idaho Initiative for Play Therapy Studies, Boise State University

"Dr. Ray specializes in play therapy and this book is aimed at therapists and counselors working in this field. There is an impressive list of contributors from academic, mental health and counseling backgrounds who each contribute a chapter to the book [...] This is a very interesting and useful guide to child development, which helps the reader to understand what is ‘normal’ at each age and stage of childhood."

SEN Magazine

From the Publisher