Teletherapy has made therapy more accessible to clients in this day and age. However, it may come with its drawbacks, especially when working with children and teens! I have compiled a new list of resources here that I'd like to share with my fellow therapists. All digital interactive resources are FREE and easy to access! I have stumbled across these sites or have learned about them through continuing education opportunities. I am so excited to also share that I am working on my first digital interactive game via google slides. I will be launching it in the coming months in my shop, The Art Therapy Shop! So anyways, enough about that...here you go another long-awaited blog post-jam-packed with lots of creativity!
Interactive Digital Resources:
When it comes to telehealth with kids and teens, I have learned to be prepared with my little toolkit of digital resources! I have continued to add new websites and resources I have found so far. If you want additional resources for telehealth make sure to check out the following articles: adventures in teletherapy, part 1 and part 2, as well as scroobly, virtual office, digital zines, and digital mandalas. There is so much cool stuff out there, don't be surprised if I post another article soon with a new list of digital resources.
Just a little note here, using digital resources can be even more engaging when you share "remote control." This can be easily done using zoom. If anyone knows what setting to use on another telehealth platform, drop a comment below and help your fellow therapists out!
The following will be a list of resources I have found to be extremely helpful in my sessions with youth. So here you go in no particular order!
Animated Drawings
This app is so interesting! It's called Animated Drawings by Meta AI Research. You can create a drawing and then upload it to sketch.metademolab.com/. This app will walk you through the process of how to upload your drawing to get the best experience. Once your drawing is uploaded you can bring it to life! I've had so many ideas on how to use this app to create animated feelings drawings and/or feelings monsters. This is a similar app to Scroobly, which I covered in a separate blog article. You can check that post out here!
Google Arts & Culture Experiments:
There are so many websites out there that I had never heard of until now. For instance, did you know that Google has an Arts & Culture Experiments website?! It's so unique and offers so many different digital experiences. They seem to update their selection of digital experiences often as well. To date here are some of the best I have found! These Google experiments are interactive and can also be shared with another user so that you are able to work collaboratively in real-time. Some of these activities can also be utilized to establish rapport and provide a safe therapeutic environment. For example, you can have a puzzle party or a blob opera with your client! Or how about creating ceramics on a digital potter's wheel, painting with relaxing music, getting creative with a drawing app, or adding some colors to digital coloring pages!
PBS Kids
This resource is great for younger children. The PBS kids website provides games by topic. You can choose to browse all topics if you like or search throughart-only games. I learned about this resource through a client of mine.
Oaklander Training
You can check out 3 of the handiest digital resources I have found so far at oaklandertraining.com.
All resources are completely free and easy to use. Oaklander training has created an online sandtray, online puppets, and online doll house.
These three resources are the best when working with younger children.
If you don't mind spending 5 bucks for an annual subscription, you can also have access to their "Mindful Drawing" app which is similar to a digital version of a Buddha Board. I feel it's not too bad of a price for an entire year worth of use!
Story Boards & Comics
I recently stumbled across 2 great digital resources for creating storyboards and comics in addition to Bookcreator.com. I have found makebeliefcomix.com and storybookthat.com to be very easy to use and are very engaging in session. I encourage you to check these out and also read my article about the Book Creator website.
For now, these are all the new digital resources I have found. I will continue to post here as I go. I am sure there are so many more I have not discovered. Digital resources are so important when it comes to engagement and establishing rapport. I'm sure these resources will be a great addition to your ever-growing tool box of digital and creative interventions. Until next time!
With Love,
Check these out at The Art Therapy Shop!
Disclaimer: This information is not intended to be utilized as a form of self-help, personal clinical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. The content on this blog is meant for educational purposes and to provide clinical art therapy directives/resources for trained mental health professionals. This information is by no means a substitute for therapy.
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