The vast majority of children experience the death of a close family member or friend by the time they complete high school. Whether involving a personal loss or one that affects the entire school or community, bereavement can have a profound and long-term impact on children’s psychological adjustment, academic achievement, and personal development. School professionals can play a vital role in helping students learn coping strategies that accelerate their adjustment and minimize their distress, maladaptive coping mechanisms, and behavioral difficulties. Yet most educators and other school professionals have had limited to no professional training on how to support grieving students. Presented by David J. Schonfeld, MD, a nationally renowned expert on childhood bereavement and school crisis, this edWebinar provides the essential information you need to provide sensitive, appropriate support to grieving students of all ages. Learn how to: – Initiate conversations with children and their families related to deaths of family members and friends – Support students when feelings of guilt affect adjustment to a loss – Provide practical advice on issues such as funeral attendance of children – Appreciate the importance of long-term follow-up after a significant loss In addition to providing practical information on supporting grieving students, Dr. Schonfeld also highlights a free, practitioner-oriented website, www.grievingstudents.org. Dr. Schonfeld introduces the site’s comprehensive materials on bereavement, developed for educators and other school professionals by the Coalition to Support Grieving Students. Pre-K through high school teachers, librarians, school and district leaders, and other school professionals interested in learning more about how to provide appropriate support to grieving students will benefit from watching this recorded edWebinar.

1. Supporting the
Grieving Student
USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work
& Pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles
schonfel@usc.edu
Director, National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement
www.schoolcrisiscenter.org | 1-877-536-NCSCB (1-877-536-2722) |
www.grievingstudents.org
David J. Schonfeld, M.D., FAAP
Brookes Publishing Co.
July 26, 2018

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6. David J. Schonfeld, MD, FAAP, established and directs the National Center for School Crisis and
Bereavement, located at the Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work in the University of
Southern California. For over 30 years, he has provided consultation and training to schools on
supporting students and staff at times of crisis and loss in the aftermath of numerous school crisis
events and disasters within the United States and abroad, including school and community
shootings and stabbings in Parkland, FL, Newtown, CT, Benton, KY, Las Vegas, NC, Spokane,
WA, Marysville, WA, Osaka, Japan, Corning, CA, Aurora, CO, Platte Canyon, CO, Chardon, Oh,
and Townville, SC; flooding from Hurricanes Maria in San Juan, Sandy in NYC and NJ, Katrina in
New Orleans and Ike in Galveston; tornadoes in Joplin, MO and Alabama; wildfires in Sonoma
County, CA and in the Great Smoky Mountains in Sevierville, TN; and the 2008 earthquake in
Sichuan, China. Dr. Schonfeld is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Disaster
Preparedness Advisory Council and the National Biodefense Science Board (NBSB)/National
Preparedness and Response Science Board (NPRSB). He served as a Commissioner for both
the National Commission on Children and Disasters and the Sandy Hook Advisory Commission in
CT.

7. Video — Teacher Interview

8. Loss is common in the lives of children
• Vast majority of children (9 of 10) experience the
death of a family member and/or friend by the
time they complete high school
• 5% of children experience death of a parent by 16
• 93% of classroom educators have never received
any training in how to support a grieving student

9. Video — Introduction

10. Children may not appear to be grieving
• Adults may communicate death is
not discussed
• Children may
• Not yet understand what has
happened or its implications
• Be overwhelmed by feelings
• Express grief indirectly through
behavior or play

11. Often adults say nothing
• Adults are afraid to say the wrong thing, upset children, or
make matters worse
• Saying nothing says a lot—it communicates that adults
are unconcerned, uncaring, or unable to be of assistance
• Leaves young children confused, older children
unsupported, and requires children of all ages to grieve
alone

12. Being with someone in distress
• Do not try to “cheer up” survivors
• Do not encourage to be strong or cover emotions
• Express feelings and demonstrate empathy
• Avoid statements such as:
• I know exactly what you are going through (You can’t)
• You must be angry (Don’t tell the person how to feel)
• Both my parents died when I was your age (Don’t compete for sympathy)
• Allow child/family to be upset and tolerate unpleasant affect, without
trying to change it. Accept reactions while suspending judgement—
intervene only when safety/health is concern

13. Children’s guilt
• Thought processes limited by:
• Egocentrism
• Limited understanding of causality
• Magical thinking
• Results in guilt
• Reassure children of lack of
responsibility

14. Children’s guilt
• Thought processes limited by:
• Egocentrism
• Limited understanding of causality
• Magical thinking
• Results in guilt
• Reassure children of lack of
responsibility

15. Children’s guilt
• Thought processes limited by:
• Egocentrism
• Limited understanding of causality
• Magical thinking
• Results in guilt
• Reassure children of lack of responsibility

16. Misconceptions & literal misinterpretations
• For young children, thought
processes are concrete and literal
• Religious explanations can be
shared, but should not be the only
explanation of death

17. Misconceptions & literal misinterpretations
• For young children, thought processes are
concrete and literal
• Religious explanations can be shared, but
should not be the only explanation of death

18. Order free materials
• www.grievingstudents.org

19. • www.grievingstudents.org
• www.bit.ly/grieving-student

20. Adolescent bereavement
• Adults assume that because adolescents
have the ability to think rationally, they
need no further explanations
• They assume since adolescents often are
less amendable to adult guidance, they do
not need support
• In reality, adolescents do, but are often left
unsupported
• Parents often rely on adolescent children
to provide comfort and take on adult
responsibilities

21. Cumulative loss
• Cumulative losses are neither protective nor desensitizing—
children don’t get “used to” death of peers
• Students may come to learn adults are unable to establish a
safe environment and unprepared to provide assistance
• They may conclude there is little value in seeking such
assistance and may appear to show no reactions after a death
• They may turn to peers for support or engage in risky
behaviors because they are fearful of their own mortality

22. Provide advice on how to support child
• Funeral attendance
• Be aware of community resources
and offer them to families
• Provide follow-up—remember that
grieving is long-term

23. Video — Grief Triggers

24. Helpful responses to a grief trigger
• Provide a safe space or an adult the student can talk to
• Set procedures for the student to obtain support
• Let the student call a parent or family member if necessary
• Provide permission and encouragement to see school social
worker, counselor, or nurse
• Offer private time with teacher to talk about feelings

25. Importance of professional self-care
• It is distressing to be with children who are in distress
• It’s critical staff find ways to have their own personal needs
met and appreciate and address impact of supporting children
who are grieving or traumatized
• Someone else’s distress may uncover feelings of loss from the
professional’s own life
• Create a culture where:
• It is okay to be upset
• Members normalize asking for help and model willingness to accept assistance

26. Coalition to Support Grieving Students
• American Federation of School Administrators (AFSA)
• American Federation of Teachers (AFT)
• American School Counselors Association (ASCA)
• National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP)
• National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP)
• National Association of School Nurses (NASN)
• National Association of School Psychologists (NASP)
• National Education Association (NEA)
• School Social Work Association of America (SSWAA)
• School Superintendents Association (AASA)

27. Supporting Organizational Members

28. www.grievingstudents.org

29. Modules Placed into Six Sections
• Each section contains 2-3 video modules; each video is
accompanied by handout that summarizes major points
• Conversation and Support
• Developmental and Cultural Considerations
• Practical Considerations
• Reactions and Triggers
• Professional Preparation and Self-Care
• Crisis and Other Special Circumstances

30. Additional Resources
• Additional Modules (e.g., police or military deaths)
• Guidance Documents
• Practical guidelines developed by the NCSCB on how to respond to
the death of a student or staff, from all causes or from suicide
• Training module
• Family and school staff brooklets
• Articles
• Online Resources

31. National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement
• Initial Funding: September 11th Children’s Fund & National
Philanthropic Trust
• Current support: New York Life Foundation
• Promote appreciate of the role schools can serve to support
students, staff, and families at times of crisis and loss
• Enhance training in professional education programs
• Serve as a resource for information, training materials,
consultation and technical assistance—provided at no charge to
schools
• www.schoolcrisiscenter.org

32. www.schoolcrisiscenter.org

33. For more information about NCSCB
• Visit us, call us, like us, share us:
1-888-53-NCSCB (1-888-536-2722)
www.SchoolCrisisCenter.org | info@schoolcrisiscenter.org
facebook.com/schoolcrisisorg
@schoolcrisisorg
National Center for School Crisis Bereavement

34. Q&A Session
Questions? brookeswebmeeting@brookespublishing.com
*Not to be combined with any other discounts or offers. Consumer orders only,
please. Excludes BOL training, pre-discounted bundles, and online products such
as ASQ Online and AEPSinteractive™.
Save 20%
at brookespublishing.com*
Use code: EDWEBDS
Expires 8/31/18

35. GIVEAWAY!
We’re giving away free copies of
Dr. Schonfeld’s book, The Grieving
Student: A Teacher’s Guide
Three attendees will be selected at random & announced after the Q&A.
Stay active in the chat to increase your chances!
3 FREE
copies!

36. Thank you to our presenter!
Learn more about Brookes Publishing at www.brookespublishing.com
Give us your feedback on this edWebinar! Click on this link in the chat:
tinyurl.com/edWebinarEval
David Schonfeld, M.D., FAAP
Director of National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement
Twitter: @schoolcrisisorg
Email: Schonfel@usc.edu
Website: www.schoolcrisiscenter.org | www.grievingstudents.org

37. Get your CE Certificate for this edWebinar
• If you’re an edWeb member your personalized
certificate will be posted to your homepage by the end of
the next business day.
• If you logged in with your email address we’ll email
you links to a CE certificate form, the recording, and how
to get added resources.
• You ONLY need to take the CE quiz if you dialed in by
phone, are watching as a group, or are viewing this as a
recording.
Join edWeb to download and track your
personalized CE certificates.