Dear Fellow Educators,
It is a proven fact that when someone dies children can react differently than adults. Children go through grief daily. They lose parents, friends, family, and even pets. I experienced this myself last year when I lost my mother. Being a mother myself, I was engulfed in my own grief and didn’t quite know what to say to or how to handle the grief of my children who fall between the ages of 5, 11, and 14. When we lack the words to say, a book can be a life line for a grieving child. A book can help a child understand about death and dying and not only that, identify with kids their own age who are experiencing some of the same emotions and feelings. Sometimes it may be difficult for a child to verbally express how they are feeling, but they still need an outlet. That’s what books are for. A book can be an outlet to a grieving child. A book can be a counselor, a friend, and a helping hand to a grieving child. As an adult, we are there to provide a listening ear, but as a teacher, we can’t be with a child 24/7. That’s why having books available in the classroom that deal with grief is helpful to have. Children can read books and identify with the characters in the story, realizing that it is okay to feel how they feel or act how they act. Some of the first stages of grief are anger, and then denial. Also, books can be helpful to smaller children who do not quite understand that their loved one is gone forever. That is why it is also great to have a selection of picture books available to help our younger students with their grief and confusion. We know through studies that there are many different types of readers out there. That is why it it is important to have a variety of chapter books, picture books, even graphic novels available. It is also important to choose multi cultural books and books that can also be tied in to other subjects like history. You want to make sure that you have a wide selection available to fit your student’s needs. Check out my reading ladder below for some great ideas on books to use in your classroom that deal with grief.
Young Adult
1. “The Fault In Our Stars” by John Green. This is a wonderful young adult novel that deals with living with, fighting, and ultimately losing someone to cancer and the main character in the novel has to learn to deal with grief. There has been a movie adaptation as well so it would be a good book to read and then watch the movie afterwards.
2. “Diary of Anne Frank” by Anne Frank. This novel not only takes a look into the intimate diary of a young girl hiding for her life but it is also historically important.
3. “Lovely Bones” by Alice Sebold. This novel not only takes us into a grieving family who just lost a child but it also gives us a unique look from the point of view of the girl that was brutally murdered.
Upper Elementary
1. “Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir” by Tom Hart. I chose this book b/c its a graphic novel. It would be good to have in the classroom b/c its a different style of writing which may be more appealing to certain students. It is also interesting because it looks at grief from a parent’s point of view instead of a child’s. That may make for a good compare/contrast assignment.
2. “Bud Not Buddy” by Christopher Curtis. This book is wonderful for a read aloud or for individual reading. It follows the actions of Bud after the loss of his mother and it can also be tied into other subject areas such as the Harlem Renaissance and the Great Depression.
3. “Where the Red Fern Grows” by Wilson Rawls. This classic can give an insight on how to deal with the loss of beloved pets.
4. “The Boy in The Striped Pajamas” by John Boyne. This heart wrenching tale of friendship, loss, and grief is also historically relevant and can be cross referenced to the Holocaust, geography, social studies.
5. “If Nathan Were Here” by Mary Bahr will help children deal with the loss of a friend.
Elementary
1. “Everett Anderson’s Goodbye” by Lucille Clifton. This book was Coretta Scott King Award in 1984. It’s about a boy who is trying to come to terms with the loss of his father .I chose it deals with grief and also because it has African American characters so it would be great to have some diversity in the classroom books.
2. “Sad Isn’t Bad” by Michaelene Mundy. Great picture book filled with advice on how to cope with loss as a child.
3. “What Star” by Jean Chenault. Great read aloud book about a young boy dealing with the loss of his grandmother.
