The topic of death and related issues (such as grief) often begin with questions. When the questions come from, or are about, children or adolescents, they bring an additional component…the fear some adults have of giving a “wrong” answer. In this context a wrong answer is one that can cause more harm than good for the child or adolescent who asked the question. This book provides information that can be used to address the death-related questions from children and adolescents. It also looks at questions from caring adults about the way children or adolescents view death and the grief that follows a death or any major loss. It covers topics that start with early studies of childhood grief and progress to expression of grief in cyberspace. There is no “one answer” to most of the questions in this book. There are contributors from a number of continents, countries, cultures and academic disciplines, each of whom brings a unique view of the topic issues they discuss. There are presentations of practical interventions that others may copy of upon which they can build. There are a number of chapters that look at death education in both family and school settings. This work contains ideas and techniques that can be of value to parents, educators, counselors, therapists, spiritual advisors, caring adults and, of course, will be of the most benefit to those who ask the most questions…the children and adolescents themselves. Intended Audience: Parents, counselors, psychologists, elementary/secondary teachers, college faculty, spiritual advisors, and the general public. “In this brilliantly researched book, the greatest experts have shared their skillfully blended tools into a volume of readable, compelling, and penetrating insights. What a magnificent contribution for all who are concerned with the grief experiences of children and youth!” Rabbi Earl A. Grollman, DHL, DD, Author of Talking about Death: A Dialogue Between Parent and Child "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear. We’re all too ready, hungry for this book of readily accessible resources and action plans to help support children and ourselves in this current net-age fraught with disasters, man-made and natural." Sandra Bertman, PhD, FT, Author, Facing Death: Images, Insights & Interventions; Grief and the Healing Arts: Creativity as Therapy "This book provides a comprehensive look at the issues faced by bereaved children and adolescents. It presents, in detail, what we know about grieving children, as well as specific ways to facilitate their mourning process. There is something here for everyone - bereaved parents, school personnel, mental health workers, and all who are faced with the normative but often challenging behavior of grieving kids. Readers can select from a potpourri of topics that pertain to their current questions and interests." J. William Worden, Ph.D. ABPP, Co-Director, Harvard Child Bereavement Study, Author: Children & Grief: When a Parent Dies (Guilford) ROBERT G. STEVENSON Robert Stevenson, EdD, is a senior professor in the Graduate Counseling Program of Mercy College, NY. He has published over 60 journal articles and book chapters and edited/authored several books. His most recent is Final Acts: End of Life, Hospice and Palliative Care (Baywood, 2013). He holds a BA (Holy Cross), MA (Montclair State University), and MAT and EdD (Fairleigh Dickinson University). He developed the first independent course on death education at the high school level and taught it for 25 years. He is a member of the International Work Group on Death, Dying and Bereavement and the Association for Death Education and Counseling. He received the 2013 Robert Fulton Founder’s Award from the Center for Death Education and Bioethics. He co-founded of a community grief support center (Jamie Schuman Center) in Hillsdale, NJ. He worked as a counselor in Paterson, NJ for five years with parolees reentering society from state prisons and adolescents in recovery. He received the Defense of Freedom Medal from NY State for his work in the NY Guard after 9/11. GERRY R. COX is a Professor Emeritus of Sociology at University of Wisconsin- La Crosse. He served as the Director of the Center for Death Education & Bioethics. He has over one hundred publications including seventeen books. He has served as editor of Illness, Crisis & Loss and for The Midwest Sociologist. He is a member of the International Work Group on Dying, Death, and Bereavement, the Midwest Sociological Society, the American Sociological Association, The International Sociological Association, Phi Kappa Phi, and Great Plains Sociological Society, and the Association of Death Education and Counseling. He served on the board of Directors of the National Prison Hospice Association. |