Teacher Resources on Death

Young Children Articles

Christian, L.G. 1997. Children and death. Young Children 52 (4): 76–80.
This article addresses children’s concepts of and responses to death and offers approaches to help children and their families deal with these issues.

Cummins, L. 2004. The funeral of Froggy the Frog: The child as dramatist, designer, and realist. Young Children 59 (4): 87–91.
Two boys hold a funeral for a frog to help them understand death. The author explains the creative and artistic aspect of producing the funeral, and how the children expressed their emotions and questions. She includes tips and a book list for helping children cope with death.

Greenberg, J. 1996. Seeing children through tragedy: My mother died today—When is she coming back? Young Children 51 (6): 76–77.
A program deals with the death of the mother of one of the children. The article suggests ways to cope with terminal illness and to plan for how to help children express their feelings about tragedy.

Essa, E.L., & C.I. Murray. 1994. Research in Review.
Young children’s understanding and experience with death. Young Children 49 (4): 74–81. This article reviews research on young children’s intellectual and emotional understanding of death. It also contains practical suggestions for helping children cope with death.

Hopkins, A.R. 2002. Children and grief: The role of the early childhood educator. Young Children 57 (1): 40–47.
A primary task of the early childhood educator is helping children deal with strong emotions in healthy ways in a safe atmosphere to foster resiliency and coping skills. The author offers ideas for helping preschoolers grasp the concept of death, commemorating a classmate, connecting with parents about grief activities, and using plant science to tell the life cycle story.

Sandstrom, S. 1999. Dear Simba is dead forever. Young Children 54 (6): 14–15.
This article describes the reactions of kindergartners to the death of their class pet, a rabbit. Some use drawing or writing, others use dramatic play, to cope with their questions and emotions.

Wood, F.B. 2008. Grief: Helping young children cope. Young Children 63 (5) 28–31.
In their role as caregivers, it is important for teachers to understand the grieving process and recognize symptoms of grief. The author explains Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’s five stages of grief and offers 10 classroom strategies to help young children cope with their feelings.