Overcoming loss : activities and stories to help transform children's grief and loss / Julia Sorensen ; illustrated by Maryam Ahmad.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Overcoming Loss is a photocopiable resource that addresses childrens' feeling of loss, which can arise from changing communities, schools, moving house, divorce or the death of a parent or grandparent. Children are limited to a vocabulary of broad emotions like 'happy', 'sad' and 'angry', and are often unable to articulate their grief in words. This can impair their long-term emotional development.

The activities in Overcoming Loss use the power of play and creative arts to give the grieving child the language to identify subtle feelings, such as shame, despair and jealousy. Designed to encourage social and emotional learning, these exercises employ play, art and story-telling to access the ways in which children naturally express their feelings, and offers opportunities for parents and professionals to direct the child towards understanding their emotions.

Parents, teachers, counsellors and anyone working with children between the ages of 4 and 8 who are dealing with a loss will find this resource a practical and effective tool.

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Introduction. Preface. How to Use this Workbook. PART I Expressive Exercises - Feelings: Activity 1 - Creating a Safe Place to Be: An introduction to feeling work. Activity 2 - Feeling Puzzle: What are the names of your feelings? Activity 3 - Match the Feeling Game: Recognizing your feelings. Activity 4 - Faces Collage: Learning what emotions are expressed on faces. Activity 5 - Feeling Faces: Draw a face to match the feeling word. Activity 6 - Feeling Words: Building a vocabulary of feeling words. Activity 7 - Finish the Sentence: Choosing a feeling word from the vocabulary list. Activity 8 - What Color Are my Feelings? Find out what color your feelings are. Activity 9 - Feelings Rainbow: Expressing your feelings through colors. PART II Expressive Exercises Continued - Identifying your Everyday Losses: Activity 10 - Saying Good Bye Is Hard to Do: Learning about everyday closures. Activity 11 - Talking About Losses with Pets or Toys: Recognizing, talking, and drawing about pet or toy losses. Activity 12 - Good Memories: Celebrating beautiful memories. Activity 13 - Memory Boxes: A way to honor the good times Activity 14 - New Perspectives: A new way to remember and feel. PART III Approaching the Loss Experience Through Fiction: Activity 15 - Story Time: Lilly Has to Say Good-Bye PART IV Creating Groups - Four Week Group Curriculum. RESOURCES: Appendix A: Cover page to be used if exercises are to be made into a personalized book. Appendix B: Feelings vocabulary list. Appendix C: US, Canadian and international associations and web addresses. Appendix D: Recommended reading list. Appendix E: Handouts. Appendix F: Group screening questionnaire and group evaluation activity.