Some of our family members are old, and some of them die. Sooner or later, all of us must face the loss of friends and family members, through death and in other ways. The death of a pet can make us very sad. When parents divorce, children often feel the loss of a parent. Sometimes family members and friends move away and don't live near us anymore and we miss them.

Someone once said: "If you share your joy with another person, you'll will double your joy. If you share your sorrow with another person, you just have half the sorrow to carry..."

In this lesson, let's share with each other how we have experienced and dealt with these losses. This is perhaps hard to talk about but you will experience that it is important to share your sorrow with others.

Classroom Discussion Questions

1. Have you ever lost a close friend or family member because of death? How did you lose this person? How did you feel at the time? Was the loss sudden or was your loved one or friend sick for a long time?
2. What did you do to get through the feelings of loss? Did you talk with others? Who can you talk to about these things when you are sad?
3. If your loss was through death, did you participate in religious rituals? Do you think children should attend funerals and visit grave sites when family member die?
4. Did you try to stay very busy so you wouldn't think too much of your loss? How can staying busy help you deal with loss?
5. Perhaps you haven't lost a friend or family member by death but you have experienced the death of a pet you loved very much. Do you think the death of a pet can be very upsetting? If you have ever lost a pet through death how did you feel? How did you deal with this sadness? Does getting a new pet help take away the sadness you feel?
6. What things can help you feel better when you are sad about the death of a friend, family member or pet?
7. How do you now feel about the loss of your friend or family member? Does the passing of time help us feel better when we are sad because we have lost a loved one? Have your feelings changed very much since you lost the person? If so, how?
8. How do you feel about death? Are you afraid to think about it? Do you often think about death when a loved one is ill? Would you like to share your thoughts with some of the others in your class or with all of us working on this project?
9. Do kids whose parents get divorced sometimes feel like they have lost a parent because they are not living with both parents anymore? What can they do to deal with this "loss?"
10. Has an older brother or sister or other family member moved to another city? Do you see them as much as you did before they moved? Does this make you sad? What can you do to help you stay close to friends and family members who move away?
11. Did a best friend in school every move away and go to another school? Were you able to keep in contact with them? How did you manage to do this?
12. How can we deal with anger when loved ones are killed by accidents?
13. Do you think it is OK for kids to cry and be sad or angry when they lose a loved one?

Classroom Activities

1. In groups, talk about memories of people that were important to you and died. Please write down your thoughts about losing a family member or a friend. Even if this hurts, try to tell us all about it. Describe how he/she was (face, smile, words... ), what you remember most, your feelings and thoughts when you first heard, what you have done to overcome the sorrow and pain, and how you feel today. Write it as a story or a poem. Please remember to send your texts to the KidCom Who-Am-I? room.
2. Gather pictures and other reminders of your loved ones and make a Memory Book. Prepare the Memory Book in class and share it with your classmates.
3. If you have a favorite toy, gift or article from your loved one who died, bring it to class and talk about why this object is special to you.
4. Draw a picture of the loved one who is now gone. Try to show in the picture the special things about this person or pet whom you miss.
5. Pretend you have lost a loved one in an accident caused by someone. Write a letter to this person and express how you feel.

Respond to messages sent from other participants.

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