Afrikan Drumming, Movement, and Play Therapy Interventions

This one-day workshop introduces traditional Afrikan drumming as a culturally grounded, evidence-informed approach to mental wellness
About this Event

This immersive one-day workshop explores how Afrikan rhythm, movement-based play therapy, and Ubuntu-centered healing practices can support work with trauma, anxiety, depression, substance use, and the lasting effects of racism and discrimination.

Clinicians will learn practical ways to integrate Afrikan drumming and movement-based play therapy interventions into clinical practice.

8 Continuing education credits provided through CE-Classess.com

2 Play therapy contact credits provided by FamPac Wellness Center, an Association for Play Therapy (APT) Approved Provider #25-796. Play therapy credits are awarded to master's-level mental health professionals or students and are specific to play therapy. Play Therapy credits count towards: 1 Contact hour - Skills and methods, and 1 Contact hour - Cultural and social diversity

CE’s provided for:

Licensed clinicians including Social Workers, Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists, Psychologists, Substance Abuse Counselors, and Expressive Arts Therapists.

• 2.5 CEs - The healing drum & drum circles

Explore traditional Afrikan healers — male and female — performing rituals that invoke the spirit of intelligence and metaphysics. Live drumming sessions reveal the healing power of ancestral rhythm, connecting participants to communal healing energy. Clinicians learn practical applications of drum circles for group therapy settings.

• 2.5 CEs - Movement and trauma healing: Integrating Play Therapy Interventions

Discover how dance and rhythmic movement modify affect and deepen insight into traumatic experience. This module presents Afrikan Dance Therapy as a structured, culturally grounded approach, alongside Western movement-based research. Rhythms that increase emotional range and promote harmonious being are central to clinical practice.

- Movement-based play therapy interventions provide clinicians with creative, developmentally appropriate strategies to help clients regulate emotions, process traumatic experiences, strengthen relationships, and build resilience. Through experiential activities and demonstrations, participants will gain practical tools for immediate use in individual, family, and group play therapy. Participants will experience a variety of movement-based techniques, including rhythmic activities and expressive movement exercises.

• 3 CEs - Drum patterns & neuro-cognitive effects of rhythm

Afrikan polyrhythm functions as a full conversation among voices in a drum orchestra — each rhythm speaking to the soul. This session examines how rhythm, harmony, and entrainment impact mood, promote mindfulness and concentration, and improve executive functioning. The language-drum connection and its neurological implications for mental health treatment are fully explicated.

Learning Objectives for The healing drum & drum circles, Movement and trauma healing, and Drum patterns & neuro-cognitive effects of rhythm modules

• Explore the foundations of Afrikan/Black Psychology and Ubuntu Psychotherapy.
• Examine traditional healing systems and culturally responsive practice.
• Understand the role of Afrikan drumming in cultural knowledge transmission and healing.
• Compare Afrikan and European worldviews in assessment and treatment.
• Identify applications of Afrikan drumming as a therapeutic intervention across diverse populations.

All five learning objectives are woven throughout the three modules, ensuring an integrated, progressive understanding of Afrikan drumming as clinical practice.

Learning Objectives for Integrating Play Therapy Interventions

• Understanding Afrikan/Black Psychology as a foundational and culturally-grounded approach
• Apply movement-based interventions within a play therapy framework to address emotional regulation, trauma processing, resilience, and parent-child relationships.
• Develop a movement-based play therapy activity plan that can be integrated into clinical practice with children, families, and groups.
• Evaluate the appropriateness of movement-based play therapy interventions based on client needs, developmental level, and treatment goals.

Credits are offered and awarded to participants who attend the event in its entirety and complete and submit an evaluation.

Direct zelle payments can also be made to fampacwellness@gmail. com

Agenda

🕑: 08:00 AM - 08:30 AM
Registration and continental breakfast
🕑: 08:30 AM - 11:00 AM
The healing drum & drum circles
🕑: 11:00 AM - 11:45 PM
Lunch
🕑: 11:45 AM - 02:15 PM
Movement and trauma healing: Intergrating play therapy interventions
🕑: 02:15 AM - 05:15 AM
Drum patterns & neuro-cognitive effects of rhythm
🕑: 05:15 PM - 05:30 PM
Wrap up and closing