Meet Frances Davis!
Hi All! My name is Frances! I’m very excited to join the Bud to Bloom team for a couple of reasons.
1. I’m really looking forward to working closely with children and families to help them become the best they can be.
2. I love play therapy and how it meets children where they are, how it allows them to communicate in a way thats most developmentally appropriate for them and also allows me to communicate with them in a way that is on their level.
My Approach to Child Therapy
My work with children is focused on meeting them where they are, allowing for self-determination and respecting their autonomy as much as possible. I strive to offer a space that allows for self-expression, exploration, and the building of self-confidence, as well as teaching skills to help them be successful.
Why do I do this? How do I do this? Children are inherently playful. Play is their language and it’s one they’re extremely well-versed in. A child’s play is their way of communicating thoughts and feelings, even if they don’t necessarily have the language to do so yet. By being fully attuned to a child’s play, behaviors, and word choice, I am able to work towards understanding what it is they’re trying to communicate and, therefore, need.
Caregivers are an integral part of the therapeutic process and I wouldn’t be able to do this work without them. The bond between a child and their caregiver is an extremely important and unique one. I work with caregivers to determine what “success” looks like for their child and the family and the steps we can take to get closer to that place. This could look like helping caregivers establish routines, how to set limits and boundaries, strategies and skills to work on increasing social-emotional abilities in their child, and psychoeducation on child development.
I work with children ages 3-18 with trauma, big feelings/behaviors, attachment issues, social-emotional issues, neurodivergence (ADHD, Autism, Down Syndrome, intellectual disabilities), gender/sexual identity challenges, adoptees, life transitions, and anxiety.
Why I Love What I Do
After having taught Cross-Categorical Special Education, I realized the part of my job I loved the most was teaching children social-emotional skills. I saw the powerful, positive impact it had not just on their emotional well-being, but on their increased ability to access their education, as well. While in graduate school, I worked with students on the Autism spectrum and with intellectual disabilities. Working with these individuals allowed me to understand that everyone can be “successful,” as long as we meet people where they are and allow them the self-determination to shape what “success” looks like.
he joy I experience when working with children and families is a large part of what I do. I believe play is something we do across the lifespan and the more we play, the more joyful our lives are. I also see the impact that working with children’s families has–not just on the children, but the family itself as a system. This impacts not just this one family, but the wider community and generations to come. There isn’t a manual for parenting. No one gives you a “How-To” when a child is born and you don’t know what you don’t know. I don’t like to say I know more than a parent about parenting, I just like to think that I know different things about parenting.
A Little Bit About Me!
I received both my Bachelor of Science in Special Education and my Master of Social Work from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. I am a transracial and transnational adoptee, I take the role of “cool aunt” very seriously, and I have the silliest, sweetest all-black cat named Stevie Nicks. I love a craft or fiber art, book club, relaxing outdoor activity, a stroll through one of St. Louis’s many parks (Tower Grove is my favorite), anything involving the Missouri Botanical Garden, History Museum or Art Museum, baking for friends/family (gifting food is how I show love), and concerts.
