Speaking

Dr. Courtney is an internationally recognized speaker known for her informative, playful, and inspiring presentation style. She has spoken at conferences and for organizations nationally and internationally including the Cayman Islands, Bali, Indonesia, England, Ireland, Hawaii, Morocco, Russia, and Ukraine. Book Dr. Courtney to speak at your next conference or to provide a FirstPlay® Certification training for your organization. Read Dr. Courtney’s Bio here

TEDx Talk

http://youtu.be/u2ahEs—xg

Old Windsor, England

Dr. Courtney has provided trainings in the area of child play therapy and offers a certification to practitioners in FirstPlay® Therapy (FirstPlay® Infant Story-Massage and FirstPlay Kinesthetic Storytelling®); Developmental Play Therapy; the Ethics of Touch in Child Play Therapy and Psychotherapy; Nature-based play therapy; Family Play Therapy; Gestalt therapy; among other topics.

Please contact Dr. Courtney directly to learn more about the specific training topics and for rates and availability. Here are some of the agencies, institutions and organizations where Dr. Courtney has been invited to speak:

  • Play Therapy Asia, Bali, Indonesia
  • Association for Play Therapy, Fresno, CA
  • Play Therapy International, UK (World Congress on Child and Play Therapy)
  • Florida Association for Play Therapy
  • National Association of Social Workers
  • Barry University Center for Professional Advancement, Miami, FL
  • TEDx, Delray Beach, FL
  • Florida Atlantic University
  • Lynn University
  • Saint Petersburg State University, Russia
  • Children’s Home Society
  • Institute for Child & Family Health,
  • First Steps to Success: ARC of the Palm Beaches
  • Department of Navy, WPB, FL
  • Boys Town
  • Literacy Coalition of Palm Beach County
  • The School District of Palm Beach County
  • Palm Beach County Mental Health Association
  • Children’s Services Council of Palm Beach County
  • Parent-Child Center of the Palm Beaches
  • Camelot Community Care
  • Linking Forces, Miami, FL
  • Hearts and Hope
  • Catholic Charities,
  • Center for Family Services
  • AVDA (Aid to Victims of Domestic Violence)
  • Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence
  • Oakwood Mental Health Center: Children’s School Outreach Program
  • Association for Community Counseling
  • Tykes and Teens of Martin County
  • Hospice
  • Cook County Family Services, Cook County, Chicago, IL
  • Palm Beach County Health Care District
  • SED-Network: Multiagency Network for Students with Severe Emotional Disturbances
  • Visiting Nurse Association of Palm Beach County
  • Children’s Case Management Organization
  • Florida Department of Children and Families District 9
  • Women in Distress
  • Chrysalis Center, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
  • Family Central, Broward County
See Dr. Courtney's Publications
List of Publications
  • Courtney, J. A. (2020). Defining Infant Play Therapy. Play Therapy Magazine. Pending Publication. 
  •  Courtney, J. A. (2020). Introduction Infant Play Therapy: Foundations, Programs, Models and Practice. New York, NY:  Routledge Publishing
  •  Courtney, J. A. (2020). Healing Child and Family Trauma through Expressive and Play Therapies: Art, Nature, Storytelling, Body, Mindfulness. New York, NY: Norton.
  •  Baldwin, B., Velasquez, M., & Courtney, J. A. (2020). FirstPlay® therapy strengthens the attachment relationship between a mother with perinatal depression and her infant. In J. A. Courtney (Ed.). Infant Play Therapy: Foundations, Models, Programs, and Practice (pp. 83-100). New York, NY: Routledge
  •  Courtney, J. A., Bakai Toth, V., & Jimenez-Pride, C. (2020). Healing reactive attachment disorder with young children through firstPlay® kinesthetic storytelling. In J. A. Courtney (Ed.). Infant Play Therapy: Foundations, Models, Programs, and Practice (pp. 245-254). New York, NY: Routledge
  •  Courtney, J. A., & Nowakowski-Sims, E. (2019) Technology’s impact on the parent-infant attachment relationship: Intervening through FirstPlay® therapy. International Journal of Play Therapy. 28(2), 57-68.
  •  Courtney, J. A., & Nowakowski-Sims, E. (2018). Technology and the threat to secure attachment relationships: What play therapists need to consider. Play Therapy, 13(3), 10-14.
  •  Courtney, J. A., & Siu, A. F. Y. (2018). Practitioner experiences of touch in working with children in play therapy. International Journal of Play Therapy, 27(2), 92-102.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pla0000064
  •  Courtney, J.A. (2017). The Art of Utilizing the Metaphorical Elements of Nature as “Co-Therapist” in Ecopsychology Play Therapy. In A. Kopytin & M. Rugh (Eds.).
  • Environmental Expressive Therapies: Nature-Assisted Theory and Practice, (Chapter 6). New York, NY: Routledge.   
  •  Courtney, J. A., & Nolan, R. D. (2017). Touch in Child Counseling and Play Therapy:  An Ethical and Clinical Guide. New York, NY: Routledge.
  •  Courtney, J. A. (2017). Overview of touch related to professional ethical and clinical practice with children. In J. A. Courtney & R. D. Nolan (Eds.), Touch in Child Counseling and Play Therapy: An Ethical and Clinical Guide (pp. 3-17). New York, NY: Routledge.
  •  Courtney, J. A., Velasquez, M., & Bakai Toth, V. (2017). FirstPlay® Infant Massage Storytelling: Facilitating Corrective Touch Experiences with a Teenage Mother and Her Abused Infant. In J. A. Courtney & R. D. Nolan (Eds.), Touch in Child Counseling and Play Therapy: An Ethical and Clinical Guide (pp. 48-62). New York, NY: Routledge.
  •  Gray, S. W., Courtney, J. A., Nolan, R. D. (2017). Competencies and Recommendations Supporting the Ethics of Touch in Child Counseling and Play Therapy.  In J. A. Courtney & R. D. Nolan (Eds.), Touch in Child Counseling and Play Therapy: An Ethical and Clinical Guide (pp. 217-230). New York, NY: Routledge.
  •  Courtney, J.A., & Mills, J. C. (2016, March). Utilizing the metaphor of nature as co-therapist in StoryPlay®. Play Therapy. Play Therapy, 11(1), 18-21
  •  Montgomery, C. & Courtney, J. (2015). The Theoretical and Therapeutic Paradigm of  Botanical Arranging. Journal of Therapeutic Horticulture, XXV(1)
  •  Courtney, J.A. (2015). Exploring Ethical Considerations of Touch in Developmental Play Therapy and its Relevance to the Formulation of FirstPlay Therapy. Florida Association for Play Therapy Playful Healer Spring, 2015.  
  •  Courtney, J.A., & Gray, S. W. (2014). A Phenomenological Inquiry into Practitioner Experiences of Developmental Play Therapy: Implications for Training in Touch. International Journal of Play Therapy, 23(2), 114-129.  
  • Courtney, J. A. (2014). FirstPlay practitioner manual. Boynton Beach, FL: Developmental Play & Attachment Therapies, Inc. 
  • Courtney, J. A. (2015). FirstPlay parent manual. Boynton Beach, FL: Developmental Play & Attachment Therapies, Inc
  •  Courtney, J.A. (2014) El Abrazo Mágico del Arcoiris. Palm Beach Gardens, FL: Developmental Play & Attachment Therapies. (Illus., Siblings, Grace & Ben Myers)
  •  Courtney, J.A. (Fall, 2013). Developmental Play Therapy and Kinesthetic Storytelling™ FirstPlay TOUCH Activities help Children with Autism. Autism Community Magazine. 
  • Courtney, J.A. (2013). The Magic Rainbow Hug: Calm & Relax. Palm Beach Gardens, FL: Developmental Play & Attachment Therapies. (Illus., Siblings, Grace & Ben Myers)
  •  Courtney, J.A. (2013). The Magic Rainbow Hug Activity Book. Palm Beach Gardens, FL: Developmental Play & Attachment Therapies. (Illustrations, Kristen Krumenacker)
  •  Courtney, J.A. (Winter, 2013) Change Your Script, Change Your Life. Nothing But Good News Magazine. Vol.8 (1) p. 12. (Online Magazine).
  •  Courtney, J.A. (2012). Touching autism through developmental play therapy.  In L. Rubin & L. Gallo-Lopez (Eds.), Play-based interventions for children  and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (pp. 137-157). New York: Routledge
  •  Courtney, J.A., & Gray, S. W. (2011, Fall). Perspectives of a child therapist as revealed through therapist drawings. Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association. 28(3), 132-139.
  • Courtney, J.A. (2011, Fall). The touchy topic of touch: Implications for developmental play therapy training and other play therapy modalities that use touch as a therapeutic intervention. Journal of the International and UK Societies of Play and Creative Arts Therapies.
  • Courtney, J.A. Children win in collaborative divorce: The role of the child specialist. (posted November 7, 2011). The Collaborative Divorce Team Palm Beach County. http://www.collaborativedivorceteam.com/role-child-specialist-collaborative-divorce
  •  Courtney, J. A. (2010, May). Research analysis of child psychotherapists and play therapist’s experiences of developmental play therapy training. Paper presented at the 2010 International Play Therapy World Congress. Marrakech, Morocco.
  • Courtney, J.A. (Play Therapy, 2011). Alzheimer’s and Play Therapy: A case study.
  • Courtney, J.A. (June, 2008) The perfect dollhouse. Play Therapy. 3(2), 6-7. 
  • Courtney, J. A. (2006). Assessing Practitioner Experiences of Developmental Play Therapy (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Barry University, Miami Shores, 
  • Courtney, J.A. (October, 2004). Tribute to Viola Brody. Paper presented at the general assembly of the 21st Annual Association for Play Therapy, Denver, CO. 
  • Courtney, J.A. (Fall, 2003). My time with Vi Brody. The Playful Healer: Newsletter of the Florida Association for Play Therapy. 
  • Schmitz, C. L., & Courtney, J. A. (1999). Out of School Care Evaluation of Capacity. Children Services Council, Palm Beach County. Academy for Better Communities, Barry University. 
  • Courtney, J.A. (Winter, 1997). Encopresis helped by play therapy: A case study. The Playful  Healer, 2-3, Newsletter of the Florida Association for Play Therapy.
  • Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.