What is Sandplay
Therapy?
Sandplay Therapy is a therapeutic method developed by Dora Kalff and based on the psychological principles of C. G. Jung. Sandplay is a creative form of therapy in using imagination, “a concentrated extract of the life forces both physical and psychic” (C. G. Jung). It is characterized by the use of sand, water and miniatures in the creation of images within the “free and protected space” of the therapeutic relationship and the sand tray. A series of Sandplay images portrayed in the sand tray create an ongoing dialogue between the conscious and the unconscious aspects of the client’s psyche which activates a healing process and the development of personality.
NowTV interview with George Kwok CST on 11 September 2025
Basic Set-Up
The Sandtray:
According to the tradition of Dora Kalff, the sandtray is a rectangular wooden box, size 28 1/2″ x 19 1/2″ x 3″ or 57 x 72 x 7 cm (Fig.1), painted blue at the bottom and sides. It is optimal to have two sand trays available in the office, one with slightly damp sand, and the other remains dry at all times. The size is based on what one can see without turning one’s head. The sandtray fills up one’s field of vision which in turn becomes one’s inner world reflected in the sand.
Fig.1
The boxes can be made to order by any furniture manufacturing company. Waterproof Sky blue paint is used for the bottom and sides. The brand from Camel Synthetic Enamel ( CM Series No. CM135) appears to be a good choice. Sometimes it makes sense to use smaller trays with young children. If a lot of water is used, a plastic container (Fig. 2),67cm x 55cm x 18cm, works very well.
Fig.2
DIY project: The transparent plastic container with lid can be found in IKEA. One can paint it with Enamel CM135. The outside of the box can be covered with plastic finishing Easy-Fix with wood line design.
The Sand:
For hygienic purpose, it is advisable to use treated fine sand commonly utilized in kindergartens. Please refer to Q & A section for places to buy sand in Hong Kong.
Shelves:
To mark out a space in your setting to put your figurines is an essential consideration, for it determines the size of your collection.
The Figurines:
To start collecting figurines is a kind of inner journey for every sandplay therapist. Initially, you may want to include objects that you can relate to in a range as wide as possible. You open yourself up to allow objects to be chosen on your shelves. This is the same process we ask our clients to do. You may be surprised at the kind of figurines that turn up in your collection. You may also pick up objects that are meaningful to you. They evoke special feelings and memories in you. Your connection with the figurines will affect how the clients use the objects. When you make new discovery of yourself, you may add new objects that symbolize your growth to the collection. As your knowledge of sandplay therapy deepens, you may re-organize your collection. Gradually, the collection becomes part of you. It reflects the unique expressiveness and the personality of the collector.
There is no set parameter for the objects to be collected. They practically include all objects that exist in the Universe. The following list, which is not comprehensive, suggests the common categories that you may want to start with. Use your imagination and experience to expand the list.
1. Creatures of the Land:
a. People: Ordinary family members including elderly grandparent, father, mother, adolescent, children, babies, historical people, space man, diver, wedding couple, the handicapped, the wounded, the graduate, the rescuer, the police, soldiers, knights, cowboys and Indians…
b. Animals:
Wild: lion, tiger, panther, zebra, bear, rhino, elephant….
Forest: deer, rabbit, coyote, wild boar, skunk…
Domesticated: cat, dog, mouse…
Prehistoric: dinosaur, mammoth…
Farm: milk cow, goat, chicken, sheep, horse, pig…
Reptiles and amphibious creatures: frog, crocodile, snake, lizard, turtle…
Insects: butterfly, spider, ant, caterpillar, cockroach, centipede, honey bee…
2. Creatures of the Sea: fish, shark, dolphin, octopus, whale, sea turtle, coral, sea horse, urchin, crab…
3. Creatures of the Sky: duck (air, land, water), owl, lovebirds, swan, bird in flight, eagle, birds with nest, peacock, bird with eggs, phoenix…
4. Nature:
a. Trees including flowering tree, fruit tree, evergreen pine, bare tree, dead tree, flowers, seaweed, cactus, all kinds of greens, lichen…
b. Rocks: all kinds of geophytes, crystal, amethyst, fossils
c. Sea shells
d. Landscape of the earth: mountains, caves, volcanoes, river, lake, pond…
5. Structure:
a. Buildings: castle, house, teepee, igloo, temple, church, cathedral, fire station, police station, gas station, amusing park, farm, barn house, hospital…
b. Barriers: screens, fences, road signs, blocks, bridges…
6. Transportation:
a. Land: bicycle, cars, police car, emergency and rescue vehicles, trucks, train, bus…
b. Air: airplane, air-balloon…
c. Sea: raft. boat, ship, row boat, sailing boat…
7. Spiritual: Gods and goddesses, figurines from different religions, mandala…
8. Fantasy figures: Witches and wizards, princes and princesses, kings and queens, magicians, fairytale and cartoon animated figures, ET, fairies, Gnome…
9. Mythical figures: Centaurs, mermaids, Minotaur, medusa, flying dragon, unicorns, pagesus, griffon, three headed dog…
10. Monster: Ghost like creatures and those that represent shadow materials
11. The Chinese five primal elements of the universe:
a. Metal, Wood, Water, Fire and Earth in actuality as well as symbolically: –
b. Metal: Copper wire; coin; ring; jewelry; Electronic goods; golden chalice…
c. Wood: Forest; tree; wooden furniture…
d. Water: distill water in the container, fountain, river, falls, ice…
e. Fire: fireplaces, stoves, red fabric, candles, bonfire, fire fighters, sun…
f. Earth: caves, bulldozers, miniature shovels, miners, clay jar; porcelain; mountain…
12. Death: Graveyard, skeleton, skulls, coffin, RIP sign, mummy, dying tree…
13. Clown: All kinds of symbol for the trickster…
14. Miscellaneous: Food, Lamp post, letters, post box, telephone, telephone booth, marbles, tea set, jewels, Band-Aids, stars, snowflakes, cloth, bones, Bible, Koran, Tai chi sign, evil eyes, different masks…
Other helpful equipments for creative process:
-
Soft wax, clay, play dough of different color that allow clients to make their own figures creatively,
-
Glue, scotch tape, blue tack for putting objects together,
-
Plastic wrap to prevent water from vanishing into the sand,
​
A few practical tips for the set-up:
-
To minimize damage for the wooden tray, make sure the interlining edges are sealed tightly with Professional Silicone Sealant to prevent water from seeping into the edges of the wooden boards in future usage. The sealant for aquarium industry is the best.
-
Try to have some order in your shelves. Categorize your collection and put them together accordingly. Figurines that end up in inappropriate or scary places will unsettle both children and adults.
-
Shelves can be covered by a curtain to avoid overwhelming certain clients or distracting others who are not engaged in the sandplay process.
​
Prepared by: Wong Wei Kwan, Adelina in September 2011
2013 Survey on the development of sandplay therapy in Hong Kong
Summary of survey report:
​
The survey was conducted during the period of March 2013 till December 2013. A total of 21 eligible questionnaires were received and analyzed. The summary of the result was as follows.
​
Most participants utilizing sandplay therapy in this survey are falling in the age group of 31-50, at least achieving master level of education. Comparatively more participants worked under social service and private setting. Most users are female and none of them adapt a non-Jungian framework. These participants are the target group to be paid emphasis on sandplay training.
For the set-up, most users get two trays or more. Overall speaking, they get sufficient miniatures with essential categories. This agrees with the low perception on the difficulties in the set up. This may also relate to the work setting to allow the easier set up.
Only a few do sandplay therapy for children at 5 or under. Age 6-11 get most participants for using sandplay therapy. Over half participants using sandplay for the age group (three groups) between 5-39. No users are reported in the age group over 60 years old. This agree with the other therapies the participants would adopt, which quite a number of participants also use play therapy together with sandplay therapy. Again the coming workshops and trainings should be focus on these age groups (children, adolescent and adults before 40).
ISST trainings are more favored to the participants comparing to the non ISST ones. Since about half of the participants used sandplay therapy for only 1-3 years, it is suggested to provide some beginner trainings for these participants.
Play therapy, CBT, psychodynamic and family therapy are those who favored to use by the participants with sandplay therapy, and play therapy is the most popular one. Work setting significantly affected those who would use play therapy together with sandplay therapy. Moreover, the difficulties in engaging clients and the understanding of Jungian theory are the two highest scored. The years of practicing sandplay therapy don’t affect the perception of difficulties, but the age and framework they use do on the difficulties to set up the sandplay. The survey also indicated that the money, space for set-up, Jungian concepts and rarity of expertise in Hong Kong are the major difficulties. Hence it is recommended that for the coming training and activities, HKSTA should consider more on the experience sharing of the trainer to engage clients (beware of the difference between clinical psychologists and counselors as they are significantly different in perceiving the difficulty), facilitating their understanding of Jungian theory and the associative use with play therapy, CBT, family therapy or psychodynamic.
For the helpfulness, it is reported that sandplay therapy is fairly helpful for the users in their practice. It should be noticed that the age of the users and framework they adopted significantly affect the perception on the helpfulness. The case nature of depression, anxiety, trauma and children as clients are those who are reported to be helpful by using sandplay therapy.
The development of sandplay therapy is under development and in an initial state, still takes time. The participants also expressed their needs, mainly the lack of qualified trainers, money, space for set-up and Jungian concepts, especially structured training.
Prepared by : Kwok Kar Kin, George in 2014