Companioning the Grieving Child Curriculum Book : Activities to Help Children & Teens Heal

Based on Alan Wolfelt’s six needs of mourning and written to pair with Companioning the Grieving Child, this thorough guide provides hundreds of hands-on activities tailored for grieving children in three age groups: preschool, elementary, and teens. Through the use of readings, games, discussion questions, and arts and crafts, caregivers can help grieving young people acknowledge the reality of the death, embrace the pain of the loss, remember the person who died, develop a new self-identity, search for meaning, and accept support. Sample activities include grief sock puppets, expression bead bracelets, the nurturing game, and writing an autobiographical poem. Activities are presented in an easy-to-follow format, and each has a goal, an objective, a sequential description of the activity, and a list of needed materials.

Patricia Morrissey, MSEd, has been an elementary and middle school teacher, a curriculum leader, a university instructor, a grief support group facilitator, and currently cochairs the Southeast Wisconsin Grief Network. She lives in Port Washington, Wisconsin. Alan D. Wolfelt, PhD, is a speaker, a grief counselor, and the director of the Center for Loss and Life Transition. He is the author of numerous books on grief, including Companioning the Bereaved, Companioning the Grieving Child, Creating Meaningful Funeral Ceremonies, Healing the Bereaved Child, Healing Your Grieving Heart, and Understanding Your Grief. He lives in Fort Collins, Colorado.