Child-Centred Sydney

05/04/2026

It's been over 10 years since I had the honour to translate these two books on respectful parenting (RIE), by Janet Lansbury, into Spanish. They were one of the most meaningful projects in which I was engaged as a translator, and I was thrilled to see the English version re-released by Penguin Random House in 2024.

As someone working in early intervention, I think it's important to learn about this respectful parenting approach, which has so much in common with Child-Centred Play Therapy, but focusing on 0-3 years, and educating the caregivers.

So today I wanted to share a reflective piece that I wrote some years ago during my postgraduate studies in Counselling. It was an attempt at describing my mindset and approach to being with young people.

As it happens, our eldest daughter turned 16 yesterday. April 2010 was when I first discovered Janet Lansbury's blog. Interestingly, given the focus on free movement by Resources for Infant Educarers and Emmi Pikler's approach, both our children are athletic, with our eldest being in full-time ballet training.

From respectful parenting to child-centred play therapy: A humanistic journey https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/from-respectful-parenting-non-directive-play-therapy-humanistic-cwmcf/

03/04/2026

"Babies and toddlers benefit from a simple daily life and... time.
Time for uninterrupted play.
Time to explore, investigate and discover what interests them.
Time to develop focus, attention and tenacity.
A slow pace supports this.
An under-scheduled day protects it." (Deborah C. Solomon)

Babies and toddlers benefit from a simple daily life and... time.

Time for uninterrupted play.

Time to explore, investigate and discover what interests them.

Time to develop focus, attention and tenacity.

A slow pace supports this.

An under-scheduled day protects it.

➡️ Go to link in bio to sign up for my weekly parenting guidance emails and free learning tools

26/03/2026

Child and play development.

23/03/2026

Curiosity. Regulation. Joy.
It all begins with play.

Join us at the 36th Annual RIE Infant-Toddler Conference for Parents and Professionals.

Link is in BIO

14/03/2026

01/03/2026

Narratives help organise our experiences. Humans have used narratives for meaning making for over 40,000 years - oral and visual storytelling are thought to have been an integral part of hunter-gatherer societies.

Narratives help us integrate information of both the right and left brain hemispheres and make sense of it. When information is fragmented (unintegrated), individuals can't describe what happened, and that becomes an unresolved experience for them.

Play therapy provides an opportunity for children to develop their narratives and make meaning of their experiences. The therapist's role is to support children through reflection and co-regulation so that they can develop coherent narratives of their lived experiences.

01/03/2026

The materials in a CCPT room are carefully selected - not collected. And no new materials are added for specific cases. However, after the Bondi Beach terrorist attack on 14 December 2025, there has been one new symbol on the shelves.

05/02/2026

Marking the end of International Play Therapy Week.

* * *
When I was growing up, my mum had a poster of the 1959 Declaration of the Rights of the Child in her paediatric waiting room. By the time I was a teenager, the declaration was followed by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989). This is the most widely ratified human rights treaty in history. The only UN country that hasn't ratified the treaty is the United States.

However, to what extent do duty bearers uphold the articles of the Convention? Wars, climate change and our busy lives in a fast-paced society often make it virtually impossible to do so. The results speak for themselves.

As a child reading my mum's poster, it seemed odd that there was a specific article about play (Art. 31). And yet, that has not been enough to ensure and promote play across all ages. In fact, free play has been in decline over the past 35 years. So much so that in March 2024, the UN General Assembly proclaimed 11 June as the International Day of Play to champion and protect this right.

Play isn't just play. Play is a physical, emotional and developmental need, as well as a basic human right. As parents, our responsibility is to allow ample time for unstructured free play, much of it outdoors. As a society, we must create and support spaces and systemic structures that encourage such unstructured free play.

But for all of this to happen, we must first educate ourselves about human development and the consequences of not allowing children the time, space and opportunity to play.

--
Originally posted on Child-Centred Sydney's page in June 2024.

On 25 March 2024, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 11 June as the International Day of Play, to be observed annually (A/RES/78/268).

30/01/2026

"The good news is, it’s never too late (…) As parents, we must be patient. Children will grow out of impulsiveness if we support the conditions that are conducive for growth. They need to feel all their feelings " - Dr. Gordon Neufeld

24/01/2026

All restocked and ready to welcome back our teens…