This 80-minute webinar offers clinical supervisors, play therapists and mental health professionals a practical and insightful exploration of how developmental stuckness presents in the therapy room, and how to respond effectively using the Embodiment–Projection–Role (EPR) Developmental Paradigm. Participants will learn how to recognise developmental regressions, adapt their interventions, and apply the EPR stages in a way that is attuned, intentional, and developmentally supportive.

• Introduction to the EPR Paradigm

A brief overview of the Embodiment–Projection–Role model, developed by Dr. Sue Jennings. Understand how EPR charts the progression of dramatic play from birth to age seven, mapping the child’s journey from sensory and bodily experiences (Embodiment), to symbolic play (Projection), to dramatic role play (Role). Explore how EPR provides a developmental and therapeutic framework that can be integrated into any psychological model or play therapy approach.

• Three Stages: Embodiment, Projection, Role
  

  Explore the three core modes of being that underpin children’s play and development:

  • Embodiment : Sensory and bodily-based play as the foundation for self and safety.
  • Projection: Symbolic play and externalization of inner experiences into objects and stories.
  • Role: Dramatic play that allows experimentation with identity, relationships, and perspective.

Learn how to recognise each stage in the playroom, and how to respond therapeutically to meet the child’s developmental needs.

• EPR and Relational Trauma

Understand how relational trauma can disrupt a child’s progression through the EPR stages. Learn how trauma can cause children to become developmentally “stuck” in earlier modes of being and how regression may appear in therapy. Explore how EPR offers a roadmap for supporting developmental repair through attuned, stage-appropriate play.

• Therapeutic Lens: Using EPR in Practice

Discover how to apply EPR as a therapeutic assessment and intervention tool. Learn how to:

• • Observe play behaviours and identify the child’s current stage.
  • Offer matching interventions (e.g., sensory grounding for embodiment, transitional objects for projection, role-play for integration).
  • Track arousal levels, co-regulate through rhythm and presence, and maintain emotional safety.
  • Move fluidly between stages as the child’s needs shift within a session.

EPR becomes a lens for understanding where the child is developmentally and how to meet them with precision and compassion.

• Emergence of Trauma Material and Summary

Gain strategies for maintaining safety and therapeutic containment as trauma material arises within play:

• • Use grounding, rhythm, and sensory boundaries in Embodiment.
  • Support symbolic distance and narrative control in Projection.
  • Offer clear boundaries, flexible roles, and de-rolling rituals in Role.
  • Reflect on the key concepts covered and how to integrate EPR into your trauma-informed clinical practice. Emphasis is placed on pacing, attunement, and the therapist’s reflective presence.
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• Summary

This training is designed to support professionals working with children who have experienced relational trauma or developmental disruption. Through the EPR paradigm, therapists gain a flexible, relational framework that supports safety, regulation, and healing through the natural language of play.