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Children’s grief and bereavement certificate program

Young child with head in knees sitting against a wall grief and bereavement

“I would recommend (this program) to all colleagues and friends!”

– Emily Carreiro, BSW, MSW, RSW Social Worker – Medical Surgical Intensive Care Unit

Grief is a confusing and isolating experience for any person, old or young. Children’s grief, however, differs considerably from adult grief, resulting in the needs of grieving children often being overlooked or misunderstood. This can have a profound impact on the social and emotional development of a child. Caregivers, including the most skilled professionals, often feel helpless when supporting children through the death of someone close to them.

The Children’s grief and bereavement certificate program explores the roots of our cultural discomfort with the topic of children and death and exposes common myths and misconceptions. This certificate program equips you with skills to provide support to children, youth and families grieving the dying or death of someone they care about. Adults cannot change the reality of a death occurring in a child’s life, but with the right tools they can play a powerful role in shaping the story of the child’s grief experience and therefore help the child thrive in life.

Each of the five modules that make up this program series explores a crucial aspect of a child or family’s grief and bereavement: covering topics such as the fundamentals of childhood grief, effective communication strategies, ways to build resilience in bereaved children and supporting harder-to-serve populations.

This program is offered as an open module series, allowing the flexibility to register for any of the five individual modules or the entire series, depending on your learning objectives. Whether you choose to join one module or all five, this series aims to provide valuable insights and practical tools for those looking to support grieving families

Module 1: Children at the bedside – Preparing children for the death of someone close to them

Module 2: When death darkens the door – Supporting bereaved children and youth

Module 3: Using mindfulness and compassion to support grieving children and families

Module 4: When grief gets more complicated

Module 5: Dancing in the darkness – Creative approaches to working with grieving children and youth

Please note: This is a five-module certificate program. You must complete all five modules within a year to obtain the certificate. Each of the modules may be taken on their own as a stand-alone training.

“The Children’s Grief and Bereavement Certificate gave me insight into the foundational needs children have for information, connection and care as well as practical tools and activities I could use right away in my practice as a death doula. I was so inspired by the facilitators that I’ve decided to pursue a master’s degree in counselling with a focus on creative interventions for grieving children. Thank you Andrea and team for igniting this flame!”