UPDATED - HELPFUL RESOURCES

Assisting the bereaved: A systematic review of the evidence for grief counselling

CHILDHOOD BEREAVEMENT NETWORK Key statistics

GRIEF SPEAKS facts/statistics

The social readjustment rating scale

Childhood Death and Grief 

Columbia University Center for Prolonged Grief

Harvard University - 8 things to remember about child development

Holmes and Rahe stress scale

Coalition to Support Grieving Students

National Bereavement Resource Guide

Grief Theory 101: The Dual Process Model of Grief

Types of Grief

Grief in the Classroom

Children's Grief Awareness Day facts and stats

Conceptualising bereavement in profound and multiple learning disabilities

Over 40 life experiences you might have that cause grief

Grief: The 40+ Events That Can Be Triggers

The Grief Recovery Method ® Guide for Loss

Judi's House Research & Tools

Bereavement During Childhood and Adolescence

Grief and its Complications in Individuals with Intellectual Disability

Assisting Bereaved US Military Service Children and Spouses

Children's Hospital Los Angeles - Coalition to Support Grieving Students

The Sacred Art of Holding Hope: When School Bells Fall Silent, but Hearts Keep Beating

School Safety Meets Mental Health: Creating Environments Where All Students Thrive

Connected Care: Trauma-Informed Partnerships

When Students Are Traumatized, Teachers Are Too

Grief in the Classroom

Time to press the restart button...

So, I've been thinking about restarting my blogging efforts. I came to this conclusion when looking online for bereavement resources for kids and they are still so difficult to find. One would think that after so many years and so much violence, there would be more resources. I need to step up my game and be a part of the solution. So, that will be my new project. The ability to support parents and educators in their journeys of holding the hands of one of our most vulnerable populations is still near and dear to my heart. This year marked the 10 year anniversary of my nephew's death and I still miss him. EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. 

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Today is inauguration day. I'm disappointed and fear for our country, but there is little I can do at this point. Democracy must be respected and upheld. This got me thinking about today because it is also Martin Luther King, Jr. day. He and all the other civil rights leaders must be turning in their graves. So, instead of focusing on the potential destruction of our country's democracy, I'm choosing to focus on MLK and his legacy. He was a sharp guy and had many wonderful thoughts and ideas, leaving a legacy for us and clues to help guide us during trying times. So, here are some quotes of his to give you hope and faith, and to remember that we are stronger together. 

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."

"Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope."

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that."

"We shall overcome because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."

"Faith is taking the first step even when you can't see the whole staircase."

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."

"Education must enable one to sift and weigh evidence, to discern the true from the false, the real from the unreal, and the facts from the fiction."

"The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically."

"Intelligence plus character, that is the goal of a true education."

It's been a long time...

This has been a challenging and wonderful couple of years. I have spent the last couple years refocusing my energies and a whole lot of self-care! Self-care is so important and is often overlooked. What is your favorite self-care activity?

List of Helpful Resources

Helpful Resources

Assisting the bereaved: A systematic review of the evidence for grief counselling

CHILDHOOD BEREAVEMENT NETWORK Key statistics

GRIEF SPEAKS facts/statistics

The social readjustment rating scale

Childhood Death and Grief 

Columbia University Center for Prolonged Grief

Harvard University - 8 things to remember about child development

Holmes and Rahe stress scale

Coalition to Support Grieving Students

National Bereavement Resource Guide

Grief Theory 101: The Dual Process Model of Grief

Types of Grief

Grief in the Classroom

Children's Grief Awareness Day facts and stats

Conceptualising bereavement in profound and multiple learning disabilities

Over 40 life experiences you might have that cause grief

Grief: The 40+ Events That Can Be Triggers

The Grief Recovery Method ® Guide for Loss

Judi's House Research & Tools

Bereavement During Childhood and Adolescence

Grief and its Complications in Individuals with Intellectual Disability

Assisting Bereaved US Military Service Children and Spouses

Children's Hospital Los Angeles - Coalition to Support Grieving Students

The Sacred Art of Holding Hope: When School Bells Fall Silent, but Hearts Keep Beating

School Safety Meets Mental Health: Creating Environments Where All Students Thrive

Connected Care: Trauma-Informed Partnerships

rev. July 2025

The reasons why supporting children through grief and loss are important to me

I have observed and experienced a gap in support services for parents and educators that support children with special needs through grief and loss.

As a teacher, I never received training or education on how to support my students if their parents were divorcing, if a loved one died, or the student moved from another country. Teachers are always told to refer the child to a guidance counselor or a social worker, when in actuality, the teacher is the one that supports the child the majority of the time at school.

My middle son, Derek, has overcome many obstacles in his life and he continues to inspire me. It was because of his Pre-K ESE teacher that I became a teacher. Derek's early years were filled with trials. He was born 2 months premature, had a developmental delay, didn't speak until he was 4 years old and when he finally began speaking, he had a stutter, and he has had challenges with his health. When Derek was 8 years old, our family was faced with the traumatic and untimely death of my 8 year old nephew, Alfredo. My son lost his best friend and the one peer that treated him like he was “normal”. Derek was as "normal" as anyone, but he didn't feel that way around kids his age. What does "normal" really even mean? As a parent, I had to search for answers on how to help him face this traumatic loss, as well as how to help his teachers support him.

Types of Loss

According to the Grief Recovery Method there are over 40 types of loss. These are some of the most common types of loss that impact children:

•Death of parent

•Divorce of parents

•Acquiring a visible deformity

•Jail sentence of parent for over one year

•Marital separation of parents

•Death of a brother or sister

•Change in acceptance by peers

•Unplanned pregnancy of sister

•Discovery of being an adopted child

•Marriage of parent to stepparent

•Death of a close friend

•Having a visible congenital deformity

•Serious illness requiring hospitalization

•Failure of a grade in school

•Not making an extracurricular activity

•Hospitalization of a parent

•Jail sentence of parent for over 30 days

•Suspension from school

•Substance abuse in the family

•Domestic Violence in the family

•Birth of a brother or sister

•Increase in arguments between parents

•Loss of job by parent

•Change in parent's financial status

•Hospitalization of a sibling

•Increased absence of parent from home

•Brother or sister leaving home

•Addition of third adult to family

•Becoming a full-fledged member of a church

•Decrease in arguments between parents

•Decrease in arguments with parents

•Mother or father beginning work