Supporting Bereaved Children

Books for Children

• Lifetimes: The Beautiful Way to Explain Death to Children by Bryan Mellonie | any loss, ages 5+ 
  
  
• Something Very Sad Happened by Bonnie Zucker | any loss, but the illustrations show a woman with a child talking about the loss of someone else, ages 2-4 
  
  
• The Goodbye Book by Todd Parr | any loss, 4-9 
  
  
• Death is Stupid by Anastasia Higginbotham | any loss, but follows the death of a grandparent, ages 4-9 
  
  
• The Memory Book: A Grief Journal for Children and Families by Joanna Rowland | Includes prompted journaling pages and space for photos, ages 5+
  
  
• Michael Rosen's Sad Book by Michael Rosen | any loss, ages 5+ 
  
  
• Missing Mommy by Rebecca Cobb | mom loss, ages 5+ 
  
  
• Goodbye Mousie by Robie Harris | pet loss, ages 4-9
  
  
• A Terrible Thing Happened by Sasha Mudlaff | for a child who has witnessed trauma, ages 4-8 | Indiebound
  
• Rudi's Pond by Eve Bunting | friend loss, ages 4-8 | Indiebound
  
  
• The Rabbit Listened by Cori Doerrfeld | empathy, ages 4+
  
  
• Remembering Ethan by Lesléa Newman | A child who loses her older brother. Addresses a child navigating the shifting dynamic with their parents, ages 5+
  
  
• Sitting Shiva by Erin Silver | A beautiful, heartfelt story about grief and loss, but also about comfort and community. Explains the purpose of a few traditional Jewish practices during grief, ages 4+ | Indiebound

Guidance

• What’s Your Grief’s post on childhood grief and how age influences understanding
  
  
• Modern Loss’ post on tantrums after loss
  
  
• The Tasks of Childhood Grief by Crossroads Hospice, which includes signs that your child is struggling with their grief. 
  
  
• How to Talk to Children about Death and Dying by Her For You

Centers

While you may not live local to these centers, they provide a number of wonderful resources online. 

• Dougy Center (Portland, OR) hosts support groups for local families and lots of useful information on their website for children of all ages. Their tips sheets are a great place to start. The Dougy Center also produces a podcast. 
  
  
• Our House Grief Support Center (Los Angeles, CA) is another large support center for grief (serves children and adults). Their child support page offers a number of helpful articles, including how to talk to children about suicide and overdose. They also have a children’s book list. 
  
  
• Judi’s House (Denver, CO) Infographics looking at childhood grief nationwide and other grief support resources.
  
  
• Lighthouse for Grieving Children (Oakville, Ontario) Supportive literature, book recommendations, and consultations. 

Opportunities for Connection

There are also camps dedicated to bereavement for families or children. Having worked as a volunteer at one of these camps, I can share that it’s an amazing opportunity for connection and support. 

• Camps in Massachusetts
  
  
• Experience Camps (in GA, ME, MI, CA, PA)
  
  
• Camps Nationwide