About this webinar
Date: May 4, 2026
Time: 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET
Facilitator: Liana Lowenstein, MSW, RSW, CPT-S.
CE hours: 2
This training is suitable for:
- Mental Health Professionals: psychotherapists, counsellors, psychologists, social workers.
Client age category: For professionals who work with clients aged 4 plus.
Recommended prerequisite: Basic child therapy skills
Description: When children and teens attend the initial therapy session, they may feel anxious and be reluctant to talk directly about their thoughts and feelings. Developing a positive rapport and implementing engaging activities will put the client at ease, and facilitate open expression.
This two-hour webinar will outline strategies and techniques to build a positive therapeutic rapport and engage children and teens in therapy. Interventions will be presented for both in-person and virtual therapy sessions.
Learning objectives:
- Articulate how to help the client experience a felt sense of safety in the initial therapy session.
- Utilize a variety of creative interventions to engage children and teens in the initial therapy session.
- Describe strategies for addressing therapeutic resistance
Continuing Education (CE) Information: SickKids Centre for Community Mental Health Learning Institute is approved by the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) to offer continuing education (CE) hours. Full-day programs equal six CE hours; half-day programs equal three CE hours; for less than half-day programs, one hour of programming equals one CE hour. SickKids Centre for Community Mental Health Learning Institute maintains responsibility for the programs.
Other licensing boards and professional organizations will grant continuing education credits for attendance at their own discretion; participants will need to submit the course outline and Certificate of Participation for their consideration.
Registration closes
If registration has closed and you're still interested in joining this course, please contact Mary Anne at mvanrooyen@sickkidscmhlearning.ca
Accessibility
We strive to ensure our online learning programs are easy for everyone, everywhere. If you have any accessibility requirements (automatic transcripts, closed-captioning, ASL interpreters, advanced access to program materials), please email Mary Anne Van Rooyen at mvanrooyen@sickkidscmhlearning.ca to let us know how we can best support your learning experience.
Photography is being used for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted in the content is a model, except where indicated.