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CONVERSATIONS WITH CHILDREN
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Children and Grief

Children grieve in their own way, and their reactions can vary according to age and maturity. Their grief can be processed through conversations with adults, siblings and peers, but also through drawing and playing.

Just like adults, children need to embrace and deal with the unimaginable of someone they love dying and never coming back.

Opening up for conversation

Here are some ideas and tools to help facilitate conversations with children about grief and about death:

  • Use crafts and creative activities: Drawing, painting, or using different materials can be a great way to express emotions. For example, you can discuss how death smells, tastes, sounds, looks, or feels through different senses.
  • Metaphors and Symbols: A flower can be a nice metaphor for sadness, joy, life and death. You can draw a flower or use a fresh flower that is then allowed to dry, and talk about its meaning.
  • The color, shape and feeling of grief: Discuss what grief has for color, form, and material. Is it round, angular, soft or rough? This can help put difficult feelings into words.

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Children's books

Books for children about grief and about death

Age 3-6 years

  • “I'll find it there.” by Jessica Lindholm
    A book about grief and missing, in which a boy navigates through the woods and his memories when someone he loves is no longer around. By returning to favorite places and moments, he holds on to his memory, and the story becomes a comforting path through grief.
  • “Those who are left” by Karin Saler
    A book about grief and how life can go on after a loss.
  • “Dödenbokan” by Pernilla Stalfelt
    A low-key and humorous picture book that explains the concept of death to younger children in a confident way.
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