Put Yourself in a Safe Place: Engaging the Imagination

A Copyrighted Activity Created by and Re-posted with Permission from Kristina Marcelli Sargent   https://kristinamarcelli.wordpress.com

Completed Example

Objectives:

The participants will:

1. Focus and visualize on a “safe place”

2. Use art and art elements to create a symbolic place where they feel safe and use this place for visualization and calming

Audience:

This activity was designed for use with children but could easily be adapted to any age of individual who has experienced trauma and wants to symbolically gain a safe place.

Supplies/Materials:

• Paper
• Paints, markers, pencils, pens, colored pencils, crayons
• Glue
• Blocks (optional)
• Sand tray (optional)

Process:

1. Help children imagine a safe place for a while and have the child paint or draw what he or she saw through imagination afterwards.

2. Recently, I have been having the children draw themselves and then put themselves inside the safe space they painted. It just seems to have added a layer of significance for the children I work with.

3. I also talk about imagination and how they have their imaginations with them wherever they go--how imagination is not something they can forget at home or something someone can take from them. It’s theirs and theirs alone and they can use it to feel more relaxed and safe wherever they are. 

4. If the child doesn’t want to paint or draw the safe space, it could also be created with blocks or in the sand tray.

5. I also let children decide if there should be any rules in their space (the answer is almost always “yes”) and what the rules would be to ensure it is a safe space for them. Great way to assess children and their needs as well! 

Adaption:

This can also be done with families!

1. Have the family work together to paint or build a safe space and come up with the rules.

2. Talk about how to make home feel more like the place they created!