Continuing Education for Dallas Counselors

Please join us for a practical CEU training featuring assessment interpretation and creative strategies for engaging adolescents!
About this Event

Building Connection: Creative Strategies for Engaging Adolescents in Therapy

Building a strong therapeutic relationship is one of the most important predictors of positive outcomes in adolescent therapy. This experiential workshop will introduce creative, developmentally appropriate strategies designed to strengthen rapport, increase engagement, and foster meaningful connections with teen clients. Participants will explore hands-on activities and interventions that can be incorporated into sessions to promote trust, encourage authentic communication, and create a more engaging therapeutic experience. Whether you're looking to refresh your approach or expand your clinical toolbox, you'll leave with practical ideas that can be implemented immediately.

Learning Objectives

• Describe the role of rapport and the therapeutic relationship in promoting engagement and facilitating clinical change with adolescent clients.
• Identify at least four creative, developmentally appropriate interventions to build rapport and increase therapeutic engagement.
• Demonstrate the use of at least two creative rapport-building activities through experiential practice.
• Apply creative rapport-building interventions that are developmentally appropriate and responsive to the individual needs of adolescent clients.

Beyond the Scores: Helping Therapists Translate Psychoeducational Evaluations into Better Treatment

Psychoeducational evaluations offer valuable insight into how clients think, learn, and process information, yet many clinicians receive little training on how to apply these findings in therapy. This interactive, case-based presentation will help participants move beyond test scores to better understand how cognitive and academic profiles influence emotional, behavioral, and academic functioning. Attendees will learn how to identify the most clinically relevant components of an evaluation, interpret common assessment findings, and use this information to strengthen case conceptualization, treatment planning, and parent collaboration. Practical strategies for adapting therapeutic interventions based on a client's unique cognitive profile will also be discussed, providing clinicians with tools they can immediately integrate into practice.

Learning Objectives

• Identify the most clinically relevant components of a psychoeducational evaluation.
• Interpret common cognitive and academic assessment findings and their impact on daily functioning.
• Apply assessment results to case conceptualization and individualized treatment planning.
• Adapt therapeutic interventions based on a client's cognitive profile.
• Communicate evaluation findings to parents using clear, strengths-based language.