RPT™ Resources
A gentle introduction to the path of play therapy.
What play therapy is, what the RPT™ credential signifies, and how consultation sustains the clinicians who choose this work.
01
What is Play Therapy?
Play therapy is a developmentally attuned approach to working with children — and increasingly with adolescents and adults — that uses play as the primary language of expression and healing. Through carefully chosen materials, presence, and clinical attunement, the therapist creates the conditions for a child to work through experiences that words alone cannot reach.
02
What is the Association for Play Therapy?
The Association for Play Therapy (APT) is the national professional organization that promotes the value of play, play therapy, and credentialed play therapists. APT establishes the training standards, ethical guidelines, and credentialing requirements that define the field in the United States.
03
What is the Registered Play Therapist™ (RPT™) credential?
The RPT™ credential, granted by APT, recognizes mental health professionals who have completed advanced training, clinical experience, and supervised practice specifically in play therapy. It signals to colleagues and families that a clinician has invested deeply in this distinct form of therapeutic work.
04
Why consultation matters
Play therapy is intimate, complex, and easy to do thinly without good support. Consultation creates a steady relational container where you can think aloud about your cases, your dynamics, and your developing identity as a therapist — not in isolation, but with a colleague who knows the territory.
05
How consultation supports development
Consultation is a formative practice, not just a checkbox. A good consultant helps you notice what you might not notice alone, integrate experience into clinical wisdom, and stay rooted in the why of your work. The right relationship can shape a career.
Coming soon
Downloadable guides
A small library of well-tended PDFs to support clinicians along the RPT™ path — currently in gentle development.
- In bloom
A starter map to RPT™
- In bloom
Choosing a consultant
- In bloom
Documenting supervised hours