29: Five Tips for Funding a Play Room
Note: Play Therapy Across the Lifespan is created to be heard. If you are able, we strongly encourage you to listen to the audio so that you are able to appreciate the emotion and emphasis that cannot be captured by text alone. Transcripts may contain errors and differ slightly from the audio. Please check the corresponding audio before quoting it in print.
Resources and Links:
Advanced Play Therapy by Dee Ray: https://www.amazon.com/Creative-Play-Therapy
Doing Play Therapy by Terry Kottman: https://www.amazon.com/Doing-Play-Therapy
Use of Toys in CCPT: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/263924647_Use_of_toys_in_child-centered_play_therapy
Boa Bop Bag – BagofAir.com: https://bagofair.com/shop/
Prologue and Introduction
I have taught a lot of students during my dozen or so years as a professor, and before I became a professor, I spent a lot of years in school as a student myself. Often one of the biggest concerns is finances. People often trade work hours for school hours, so in addition to the extra expenses for tuition, books, and fees, they often have a reduction of income. We believe that it is worth it, that the education is going to reap a better income later, but for now, the budget might be tight. New professionals often need to be budget-conscious, too, because those student loans are coming due. Throw in expensive life events like weddings and babies, and you may be wondering how to pay for a play room.
I’ve got some ideas to help you equip your play space with quality items.
This is episode 29: Funding a Playroom.
You are taking your first play therapy class and you need to assemble your first play therapy kit. Or maybe you are a new professional with a blank space waiting for you to set it up. Maybe someone has approached you asking you to turn a space into a play or sand or other expressive art room. It’s exciting, but it could also be intimidating to figure out how to afford everything at once.
Honestly, it doesn’t need to be all at once. Just because some items could be in your play space doesn’t mean they all should be. You have time to add things later, and that is beneficial because you will know yourself and your clients better as you go.
Let me divide this discussion into two categories: Other-funded and self-funded. Sometimes, you find other sources to fund, or partially fund, your playroom and supplies. Sometimes, you have to do it out of your personal resources. Let’s start with other-funded.
This is my best piece of advice: ask! Often there is some money available at your agency or nonprofit, even those with tight budgets or who depend on donations. It’s certainly possible that you will get a no, but even if you get a small amount, it helps. Just remember that whoever paid for it keeps it when the time comes for you to move to the next job.
For those of you who are students, you may automatically think that you have to bring all your own supplies, but it might be worth it to ask anyway. Offer to create a small play therapy supply kit for your site. Who knows, they might be so impressed with you that they see the value of hiring someone trained in play therapy… maybe even you. At a minimum, they might be willing to pitch in office supplies, like copy paper, markers, glue, and organizational supplies for storage. At a preschool that I worked at, they let me use some of the sturdy, toy, wooden furniture (like a kitchen, cradle, table and chairs, and a washing machine) that were in storage. That helped my budget a lot because those would have been too expensive for me to buy then.
And speaking of asking, seek out grants or patrons to fund your project. Here in Nashville, our professional football team completely funded the playroom of a local agency. Go, Titans! The Rotary club in the rural county offered small teacher grants, which I could apply for as a school counselor. A restaurant or community agency might happily donate a couple thousand dollars for renovation, and a nice plaque commemorating their generosity is a win-win. You don’t need a mega-federal grant. Sometimes, a few hundred dollars pays for that cool mural or the art nook, which leads me to my next point.
Know what you need. Being clear about what you need means that you can ask for specific parts of your dream space. Maybe you don’t get it all at once, or you need multiple patrons, but having a clear answer when someone says, “How can I help?” is important.
Have a physical representation of your play space. Design your ideal space on paper or digitally: Maybe it will happen. If you are an intern who can’t yet ask for a budget, this is a great time to dream and get your thoughts together about what you want after you graduate. I should warn you that several of our interns have been asked to set up a playroom at their sites, and all they had to do was pull out their ideal playroom sketches.
As you dream about your ideal playroom space, it might be helpful to create a shoot-the-moon budget and a good enough budget with the essentials. So be ready with your dream ask. This is what you would love to have if money were no object. But, you also want to have a more realistic budget ready with the toys you most need in each category, the basic furniture, and shelves for storage. Can I say again to not be afraid to ask? I have been surprised at how often my students and alumni have gotten all they asked for. It might be easier to think of it as being the voice for your clients.
Next, let’s turn to self-funding. This is what I had to do when starting out, and many of you may be doing this, too.
If you want or need to self-fund, then second-hand toys and furniture are great options. Second-hand furniture is often sturdier because the low-quality items already fell apart. Used toys have the added benefit of not being too pristine to play with, and it won’t upset you if you they get broken. You can buy used items at consignment stores, yard sales, or through Facebook groups. Personally, I like supporting the missions of some of our thrift stores, which is an extra bonus. Many group people and action figures in bags for a dollar or two. I funded my first sand tray with miniatures for less than $20 this way, including a container and sand from a home improvement store.
I might sound like a broken record, but ask. You can often get items for free just for putting the word out that you need something. Ask friends with kids who are quickly outgrowing some toys or changing interests. You might even post a request on the bulletin board of your favorite coffee shop (with permission, of course). Or search on freecycle. These can be great options for those expensive wood dollhouses or furniture that you might want to cover with chalkboard paint.
You can also get supplies very inexpensively at dollar-type stores. These can be great for basic art supplies, bins and containers, some dress-up items, natural items for the sand tray, and office supplies. Be cautious about buying low-quality toys that won’t last. Try to get the best quality you can afford because you don’t want a bunch of broken toys. When a child breaks a toy, they may feel embarrassed, ashamed, or disappointed, which could impact your therapeutic relationship. Of course, this happens sometimes, but you want to limit it when you can, and you certainly don’t want a play space filled with broken toys. What kind of message does that send?
Those are some of my ideas, but I know Dr. Kasie Lee has more to share. Let’s hear from her next.
Interview with Dr. Kasie Lee
[The interview portion of this episode was not transcribed. To listen to the interview click the episode link at the top of the page.]
Conclusion
Buying stuff is fun, but you don’t need to spend a lot to equip your play space with the essentials. Today you heard my five best tips for funding a playroom.
We’ll talk more about the must-have toys next time, but the first budget-friendly tip is to start minimal.
Tip number two is to ask. That might be tips three through five as well. Ask your employer or internship site if they will help you with toys and supplies.
Tip number three is to sketch out your ideal playroom and look for ways for others to help you make it a reality. Community grants, organizations looking for projects, or friends and relatives who want to help you can all help with all or part of it. I have known graduate students to ask for playroom toys for Christmas. Remember to say thank you!
Tip number four is to buy second-hand items at budget-friendly places. Look for quality and sturdy furniture.
And tip number five is to shop discount dollar-type stores for other things you might need, like office supplies, basic art supplies, natural items for the sand, and storage containers to stay organized. But stay away from the low-quality, easily-broken toys.
Have you sketched out your ideal play space yet?
