This book is a psychoanalytic observation of five children’s existential encounters in their ordinary life at the nursery. It is among the first within psychosocial literature to go beyond adult experiences and explore the existential in young children’s lives as it plays out in their everydayness in symbolic and sensory articulations and in relationship with others; including with the author as someone who arrived looking for it. The author offers analysis in the form of a writing inquiry into meaning, by means of an on-going movement between the self and the other, the interior and the exterior, and psychoanalytic and existential-phenomenological ideas. This is illustrated through a kaleidoscopic account of May, Nadia, Edward, Baba and Eilidhs’ encounters with nothingness, strangeness, ontological insecurity, death and selfhood as these emerged in the time they spent with the author embodying different forms – from concrete objects to dreams – exemplifying an attunement to existential ubiquity. With its relational ground, this work suggests the potential for adults – including researchers, therapists, trainees, educators and parents – to attune to their own existential encounters as a path to understanding those of children.

Counseling Children and Adolescents, Second Edition reviews the most relevant theoretical approaches for counseling children (CBT, emotion focused therapy, play therapy, systems theory and developmental theories) and focuses on connecting key theories to application via case studies. The book has an integrated framework that focuses on development and diversity. In addition, a unique aspect of this text is its focus on neuroscience, the developing brain, and the impact of early childhood trauma on development. Updates to the second edition include new coverage of the multicultural ethical decision model, intersectionality, implicit bias, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and new research and citations.

The subject of this book is young children’s emotional-social learning and development within early childhood care and education settings in Aotearoa-New Zealand. The focus on emotional complexity fills a gap in early childhood care and education research where young children are frequently framed narrowly as ‘learners,’ ignoring the importance of emotional functioning and the feelings with which children make sense of themselves and the world. This book draws on original data in the form of narrative-like framed events to creatively illustrate the complexities in children’s diverse ways of feeling, thinking, playing, being, and becoming. Events illuminate the feelings and meanings of observed experiences in holistic and contextualised gestalts. Awareness of unconscious processes, the feeling of feelings, and cultural dimensions of development and meaning-making are addressed. The book emphasises the emergent and psychodynamic nature of children’s development and learning with strong links to the role of play and playfulness in the events, drawing on two ethnographically inspired research projects that present theory, experience and practice in real-life events.

The first part of this book contains a new system of existential psychotherapy illustrated by a few case studies. The Second Section entitled Gallimaufry is a selection of articles on various topics.

There has been a growing academic interest in the role of outdoor spaces for play in a child′s development. This text represents a coordinated and comprehensive volume of international research on this subject edited by members of the well-established European Early Childhood Education Research Association Outdoor Play and Learning SIG (OPAL). Chapters written by authors from Europe, North and South America, Australasia and Asia Pacific countries are organised into six sections: Theoretical Frameworks and Conceptual Approaches for Understanding Outdoor Play & Learning Critical Reflections on Policy and Regulation in Outdoor Play & Learning Children′s Engagement with Nature, Sustainability and Children′s Geographies Diverse Contexts and Inclusion in Children′s Outdoor Play Environments Methodologies for Researching Outdoor Play and Learning Links Between Research and Practice

This foundational text offers dynamic and fresh perspectives on theories across the helping professions to help guide client case conceptualization and therapeutic transformation. A diverse group of topical experts providees contemporary insight on the following theories: relational-cultural, psychodynamic, Jungian, Adlerian, existential, person-centered, Gestalt, cognitive behavioral, third-wave cognitive behavioral, rational emotive, reality therapy/choice, family, feminist, constructivist, and emotion-focused theories, as well as creative approaches to counseling used in a variety of theoretical models. Each theory is discussed in terms of historical backtround; human nature and development; major constructs; applications, including goals, the process of change, traditional and brief interventions, and serious mental health issues, supporting research and limitations; and the case of Clarita. The use of a consistent case study across chapters reinforces the differences between theories and demonstrates how each theory influences the counseling and treatment plan. A complimentary test manual and PowerPoints for instructor use are available by request. *Requests for digital versions from ACA can be found on www.wiley.com *To purchase print copies, please visit the ACA website https://imis.counseling.org/store/ *Reproduction requests for material from books published by the ACA should be directed to publications@counseling.org

For school professionals seeking to work in emotionally focused ways with children, this book offers a wide range of essays illustrating how psychodynamic ideas can be used to validate children, respect the contexts of their families and communities, and create non-authoritarian classrooms and schools in which such children might develop to their fullest potential.

Literature and Philosophical Play in Early Childhood Education explores the role of philosophy and the humanities as pedagogy in early childhood educational research and practice, arguing that research should attend to questions about education and growth that concern social structures, individual development, and existential aspects of learning. It demonstrates how we can think of pedagogy and educational practices in early childhood as artistic, poetic, and philosophical, and exemplifies a humanities-based approach by giving literature and artful play a place in shaping the ground of practice and research. The book explores a range of alternative approaches to theory in education and the feasibility of a curriculum of moral values for young children and contains a variety of scenes involving children’s play and involvement with literature and fiction. It portrays how engaging with children’s play can be a philosophical and pedagogical investigation where children’s own philosophising is taken seriously, where children’s thoughts are put on a par with established research and philosophy. Moreover, the book engages with a range of different forms of literature – picture books, novels, auto-fiction, poetry – and develops these as portrayals that serve as a basis for non-theoretical and poetic pedagogical research. Literature and Philosophical Play in Early Childhood Education will be of great interest to academics, researchers, and post-graduate students in the fields of philosophy and education. It will also appeal to upper-level undergraduates, school psychologists, teachers, and therapists.

There is an increasing recognition today that young people need to have knowledge about religions and world views in order to live and work in diverse societies. What kind of 'maps' are they provided with through religious, values and ethics education? Does education address the challenging existential questions that children and adolescents ask about life and the world? This volume addresses different aspects of how existential questions have been dealt with in educational research. It especially draws attention to the Swedish research tradition of focusing on life questions and the interpretation of life in education, but with contemporary international research added. It also addresses issues of ethics education and discusses possible options for the future of existential questions as a resource for education.

Phenomenology and Educational Theory in Conversation challenges the abstract-technical understanding of education to orient the reader to the importance of relationality, intersubjectivity, and otherness to renew and reclaim the educational project. This book treats education as a matter of existence, relationality, and common human concerns. It offers readers an alternative language to reveal and challenge the humanistic encounters that often disappear in the shadows of neoliberalism. The phenomenologists, and educational theorists featured here, offer insights that connect fully and concretely with the everyday lives of educators and students. They offer another language by which to understand education that is counter to the objectifying, instrumentalist language prevalent in neoliberal discourse. This book will be of great interest for academics, researchers, and post-graduate students in the fields of pedagogy, phenomenology, educational theory, and progressive education.