Seeds of Hope Bereavement and Loss Activity Book: Helping Children and Young People Cope with Change Through Nature

Life is full of changes; they happen all the time. Some changes are harder to cope with than others.' Seeds of Hope Bereavement and Loss Activity Book uses nature to help children understand death, loss and change in a gentle and honest way. Full of creative activities, such as choosing an insect or plant and using it to draw a life cycle, or making a paper memory tree of happy and sad memories, it helps children learn about loss and death, the cycle of life and how to cope with and express feelings of sadness and grief. This book is ideal for parents and carers, teachers, therapists and counsellors to use with children aged 5+ who have suffered any type of loss or are dealing with change, or who are bereaved.

Table of Contents:
Author's Note. Imagine: Learning from Nature. Medicine Wheel: What animals can teach us. Draw or Paint: Suggestions of drawing or painting things to do. Write: Suggestions of writing things to do. Memory and Loss Leaves: Leaves to cut out and draw or write on. Memory and Loss Tree: For sticking your leaves on. Big Leaves: Bigger leaves for a bigger tree. Changes: How change affects us. Lifetimes: Life cycles – long and short. Colouring: Pictures to colour in. The Feelings Tree: Different feelings. Exploring the Feelings Tree: Finding out more. Sticking Stickers: Things to do with stickers. Stickers: For sticking! The Language of Flowers: Myths and meanings. Word Storms: A game to play. Snakes and Ladders of Loss: Another game. Feelings and Seasons: Thinking about feelings. Mandalas: What they are and how to use them. Labyrinths: What they are and how to walk them. Poems and Stuff: What other people have written. My Story: Sharing feelings. Information on Loss and Bereavement: What to expect, including a section for teachers. Support Groups.

About the Author :
Caroline Jay founded and runs the Seeds of Hope Children's Garden, a national charity which aims to promote the use of nature in helping children manage loss. For twelve years she ran a SANDS (Stillbirth and Neonatal Death charity) group, supporting families after the death of a baby. She is the co-author of 'What Does Dead Mean? A Book for Young Children to Help Explain Death and Dying' published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Review :
As a teacher for more than thirty years, I have had in my care many children who have suffered the loss of a parent, sibling or close friend. Death for all of us is devastating but for a child it will create a wealth of emotions that are incomprehensible. For each it is unique. The Seeds of Hope Bereavement and Loss Activity Book gives a wide variety of ideas to help the child explore, recognise and accept their feelings in a concrete, thoughtful and healing way. I would highly recommend it to all those in education, to empower you when needed or as a way of teaching about death and renewal on a regular basis. Understanding the cycle of nature is an essential part of understanding the cycle of life. This creative and imaginative activity book uses the world of nature to explore this. Children and adults are encouraged to discuss the beginning and the end of life in all its forms, to ask questions and seek answers together. A lifetime's experience in this area has taught me that children benefit tremendously from being helped to talk openly about these issues. I highly recommend Caroline Jay and Unity-Joy Dale's wonderful Seeds of Hope Bereavement and Loss Activity Book. For those teachers at a loss for how to address this most sensitive topic in a sensitive manner, this book offers a wealth of original and creative ideas.