ACT for Treating Children: The Essential Guide to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Kids

by Tamar D. Black, Russ Harris (Foreword)

Written by an experienced educational and developmental psychologist, ACT for Treating Children offers clinicians clear, practical, brief, and developmentally appropriate strategies grounded in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) to help children ages 5 to 12 learn effective coping skills, manage emotions, and bounce back from life's difficulties. If you treat children struggling with mental health conditions such as depression or anxiety, you know that approaches designed for adults do not work with younger clients. ACT for Treating Children presents skills grounded in evidence-based ACT to help children regulate emotions and cope with the inevitable ups and downs of life, and is suitable for clinicians with no prior knowledge of or training in ACT, as well as seasoned ACT clinicians. This practical clinician’s guide outlines a simplified version of the ACT Hexaflex—a key component of this treatment model—called the Kidflex, to help young clients build resilience and psychological flexibility. You’ll also find detailed case studies, transcripts, activities, experiential exercises, worksheets, and session plans to help you develop the skillset you need to help children overcome disorders such as stress, anxiety and depression. Finally, you’ll find strategies for involving parents in treatment when appropriate, and enlisting them as ‘ACT coaches’ in the child’s therapy. It can be difficult to know where to start when using ACT for individual therapy with children. That’s why the skills in this go-to guide are practical and easy-to-implement, can be done with children in both face-to-face therapy and online sessions, and are simple enough for children to put into practice in any setting—whether it’s at home, in school, or out in the world.

Genres: Psychology, Counselling, Nonfiction

232 pages, Paperback

Published May 1, 2022

About the author

Dr Tamar Black is a licensed Educational and Developmental Psychologist in Melbourne, Australia. She has more than 20 years experience working in private practice and as a school psychologist. She has extensive experience providing counselling to children, adolescents and parents, and providing clinical consultation to psychologists. She provides ACT training to individuals and organizations. Tamar is passionate about using ACT with children and adolescents and teaches clinicians how to use ACT in a simple and developmentally appropriate way. She is an approved supervisor with the Psychology Board of Australia and the Australian Psychological Society College of Educational and Developmental Psychologists.

Reviews

[Luis Knight · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got my copy of Tamar's new book today and immediately devoured it. It is an excellent book. If you work with kids, get it. If you don't work with kids, get it anyway, because the language in it will help anyone get out of nerdspeak. And boy do I need to stay out of nerdspeak. The "Kidflex" language alone is worth the price of admission. I wish this book had been published ten years ago.

Lucidly written, carefully thought-out, beautifully done: the whole, should you follow it, resulting in effortlessly Doing The Thing. You would think Dr. Black was trained by Dr. Louise Hayes or something.

[Ben Sedley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an absolute gift to new clinicians, but there are also lots of helpful gems for more experienced therapists. Incorporates all the elements of ACT in kid-friendly language, and also teaches children to use more self-compassion (ACT has always been implicitly self-compassionate, but I love the way that teaching compassion has become more overt). Helpful section on working with parents too.

[Erin Leventhal · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️
Dates read: 5/12/2025–5/20/2025
When I was in school to become a Speech-Language Pathologist, counseling methods were rarely covered. Thanks to research and the lived experience of those we work with, counseling is now a huge focus in the field. I have learned and refined my counseling skills over the past few years, especially when working with people who stutter, and am excited to put these skills to use working with multiple camps and organizations that promote cognitive approaches when treating stuttering. One such camp is at the University I work with, and I am thrilled to be part of the teaching team this summer. The camp is based on ACT principles and this book is one of the cornerstones of our training for students.
Tamar Black breaks down ACT principles in easily understandable bits, complete with case studies and example scripts. ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) is appropriate for all ages. However, Black has broken the original ACT hexaflex into kid terms and example activities in this book. The big picture is to promote psychological flexibility using the ACT principles of "Let it Be," "Let it Go," "Choose What Matters," "Do What Matters," "Stay Here," and "Notice Yourself," all wrapped up in "Be Kind and Caring to Yourself".
Whether you work with kids or not, this book has valuable information anyone can use to promote their own psychological flexibility. In fact, this book has been a hugely valuable resource as I prepare to fly (for the first time in 24 years) to a conference on Cognitive Approaches for People Who Stutter--how's that for putting theory into action right away?!
This is a fantastic resource if you are a mental health professional or someone in adjacent fields who is looking for another set of tools for your toolbox!

[Charles E · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Disclosure: I received a free copy for review)
I have been enjoying reading this book because it is both highly informative and written to be accessible (so it is not a "chore to read"). I have been a practitioner for about 10 years now and specialize in working with children who are struggling with strong emotions and the behaviors that come with those emotions. I read a lot of books as I am always trying to find new tools and strategies for helping these kids. With that background in mind, I genuinely have found this book fantastic for providing new insights and ideas and new ways of applying existing knowledge. The ACT Kidflex alone is a wonderful idea and I think I will actually use that language with more than just children! Here are some bulleted thoughts:

- I enjoyed how Tamara points out and describes her experiences in implementing ACT w/ children – it makes it feel more relatable and less intimidating
- This book provides a good brief introduction to ACT for newbies and then quickly expands on it so experienced practitioners benefit too
- I will probably use the Kidflex language w/ all clients!

[Rebecca Comizio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished reading this fantastic addition to my work library. If you are a school psychologist or other childhood mental health professional interested in ACT, learning ACT for adolescents or adults, or are trained in CBT you will love this book.
I am a school psychologist working in a school and private practice setting with children & adolescents. This book was so practical and helpful with detailed session plans and strategies with scripting. I loved the way Dr. Black added her personal experiences with using ACT with children, and "hints" that were warm and supportive. It was like having a compassionate supervisor in your corner while navigating ACT practices. This is a must have book for every clinician working with children.

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has been needed for a long time, and it certainly delivers! Written in an easily accessible style, Dr Black draws upon the extensive scientific evidence base for Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and presents it with authentic therapy examples and sample scripts to show clinicians how to successfully work in creative ways with the very small. Experienced ACT clinicians will find new, creative ideas for bringing concepts to life in the therapy room. This is also a brilliant guide for early career mental health professionals with the gentle way Dr Black steps the reader through each part of the case conceptualisation and a complete treatment protocol. I will be recommending this as essential reading for all of my supervisees.

[Georgina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is essential for any mental health clinician interested in, or who is already using ACT with primary age children. It contains developmentally appropriate activities, which focus on children's strengths, as well as ways in which to involve the family, so that key skills and concepts can be reinforced in the home. It is beautifully written, with accessible language that is easy to understand, as well as loads of fantastic examples of how to explain ACT processes to children. The Kidflex (based on the more traditional ACT hexaflex) is simple to use with children and parents, and the visual in the book is easy to remember, and navigate in sessions. I would highly recommend this book to beginners and experts alike!

[Juliana Negreiros · Rating 5 out of 5]

ACT for Treating Children is the first resource I came across that uses simple and accessible language to teach children ages 5- 12 life-changing strategies derived from ACT. In addition to providing engaging and practical activities and handouts, Tamar Black gives clinicians suggestions and examples on how to address challenges that arise during the therapeutic process when working with children and their parents. I have recommended this book to many colleagues and supervisees and highly recommend it to any clinician who would like to enhance their ACT skills when treating this young population in a creative, entertaining, and fun way.

[Matis Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Must-read for any clinician working with children

This book breaks down the concepts and strategies of ACT in a clear and concise manner and has a treasure chest of ready to implement exercises. I experienced Dr. Black’s own “flexibility” and “compassion” on every page as she truly embodies her work. The author’s years of experience and creativity in working with children and families is very apparent and I highly recommend that all clinicians working with this population (practicing ACT of any form of psychotherapy) purchase and make use of this incredible resource!

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful! This book is amazing because it literally equips therapist and teachers with the skills needed to use ACT for children. I would argue that this book really is an essential read for ACT even if one does not work with children because it breaks ACT down into simple and easy to comprehend concepts. It is now included in my recommended read list, and furthermore, it is at the top! Like I said, beautiful! I cannot re this book enough! I will be revisiting it regularly.

[Sigalit Barzilai · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book very helpful for me as a therapist. It is concise and clear. As an ACT therapist who works with children, it is exactly what I felt was needed. I find the Kidflex a great way to convey the Hexaflex concept to children. Tamar Black created a language that is appropriate for kids and included great ideas for activities and exercises for both the children and their parents. Moreover, I feel that the ACT stance is implemented within the book itself - Highly recommended!

[Danielle Hayes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have used this book every day in my practice since I bought it. As a child and adolescent therapist, I have studied ACT Therapy, but have always been challenged in converting it to suit younger children. ACT For Treating Children provides practical exercises, suitable for children and teens, which are engaging and essential in exploring the ACT Hexaflex (or KidFlex)! I highly recommend this book for anyone working with children.

[Miss N L Andrews]

I am a primary care practitioner working with children and young people. I have found this book invaluable. It breaks down the core elements of ACT and this means it’s easy to base sessions around, it also makes it approachable for my service users. I love the downloadable worksheets and the exercises are insightful and have helped unpick issues presented.

Great value for money and I hope the author writes more!

[Gary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a great book for therapists that explains ACT in a really simple and practical way. I've read many other ACT books, but this is the first book about how to use ACT with children. I love Dr Black's simplicity and clarity, and I now understand what ACT is all about and how to use it with children. I will also be using many of the exercises in my work with adolescents and adults. Thank you so much Dr Black for writing this book!

[Caren Baruch-Feldman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found ACT For Treating Children excellent. It was well organized and easy for someone who has experience with ACT and someone like me who is a traditional CBT therapist to use. I also liked that I gained a real understanding of ACT principles through the book. Bravo!

[Miss A · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book. Very accessible. I use ACT with an adult population and recently have had cause to consider application with younger people. This book has been very useful to help with this transition

[Lisa Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very helpful book for both clinicians and parents. Tamar provides excellent practical strategies and also clearly explains the theory in a manner that is easy to understand.

[Camille Summers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic approach. I wish there was more focus on anger and aggression but appreciate the suggestions!

[Emily Feldman · Rating 5 out of 5]

absolutely fantastic! I loved the session transcripts that are included