Death is difficult to understand, and when a community member dies – or many do – children may struggle to make sense of a senseless situation.

The death of a family member or friend can be a tramautic experience for a child or teen, and "a child suffering the loss of a parent or sibling is likely to be in great need of personal attention," says grief expert Helen Fitzgerald. It is important to talk (and listen) to children who are grieving, but we may not know what to say or do.

Legacy offers advice from grief experts to help you understand and support a child or teenager coping with loss. Explore the links below to find expert advice on children and grief.

Flickr Creative Commons / 55Laney69

Helping Children Through Grief

• How Can We Respond to the Grief of Children?

• Helping Children Through Grief

• Helping a Child Deal with Loss

• Military Kids: Responding to their Grief

• Writing a Condolence Note to a Grieving Child

• Should children write sympathy notes?

• Is it appropriate to take my young child to a funeral?

• When to Involve Children in the Bereavement Process

• Teaching Children to Comfort the Bereaved

Teenagers and Loss

• The Grieving Teen

• What Adults Can Learn from Teen Grievers

• Writing a Condolence Note to a Grieving Teen

• Teen Memorial Services

More on Grief and Loss

• Myths About Grief

• Loss of Our Assumptive World

• Family Reorganization After a Loss

• But I Feel So Guilty

• Sibling Survivors of Suicide