ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces play therapy, an intervention that facilitates development of children with a variety of behavioral and mental health issues. Play therapy is a dynamic interpersonal relationship between a child and a therapist who provides selected toys and facilitates the development of a safe relationship in which the child explores and expresses self, thoughts, and emotions through play. The importance of play in early childhood education is long acknowledged in the extensive research literature devoted to this topic. In the 19th century, Friedrich Froebel, known as the father and the founder of kindergarten, articulated more comprehensive and detailed ideas about the importance of play in early childhood education. The principles of Child Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) are based on Carl Rogers 1959 person centered therapy. Rogers believed that all individuals have an inner capacity to develop in a positive direction and to solve their problems, if the provided climate allows them.
