Health and Wellbeing
Supporting Autistic Children when Someone Dies
Explain a death to an autistic child in words they can't misread, and support their grief in ways that fit how they think.
- 55 minutes
- Recorded webinar
- 1 CPD hour
- Certificate
Members
14 days free, then £70 a year or £7 a month.
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What you'll learn
- Explain death in concrete words and avoid euphemisms that confuse
- Check what a child has understood with yes and no cards
- Build a social story or picture sequence about what happened
- Help a child name their feelings and show how big they are
- Prepare a child for a funeral, with a backup plan if it's too much
About this course
Tell an autistic child that Grandad has "gone to sleep" or that "we've lost him", and they may take you at your word. Gentle euphemisms can leave them confused, or waiting for someone to come back.
You'll learn to say plainly what happened: the body stopped working and it can't start again. Then you'll check the child has understood, using simple yes and no cards, and help them build a social story or picture sequence of what happened. There are visual ways for them to show how big a feeling is, and ideas for memory boxes that keep the person close. You'll also plan for a funeral, with a plan B if it's too much.
It's led by a former primary teacher and SENCO who has since supported hundreds of bereaved children, many of them autistic, in mainstream and specialist settings. It will help parents as much as staff.
- For early career teachers, mental health leads and 6 other roles. All phases.
Recording
- 55 min
Webinar Playback