Understanding Grief and Loss

Overview

This 55-minute KS4 SEND lesson explores the emotional impact of grief and loss, recognising varied responses and emphasising the value of support. The session is designed to meet the Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) Education statutory guidance for England, focusing on emotional wellbeing, mental health, and resilience.

National Curriculum Links

• PSHE Education (statutory from 2020) – Key Stage 4:

  • Core Theme 1: Health and Wellbeing
    • Learning Objective: Understand how emotions and mental health can be affected by loss and change.
    • Competency: Develop strategies to manage changing feelings, resilience, and accessing support.
  • Core Theme 3: Relationships
    • Learning Outcome: Recognise the range of emotions experienced in different relationships and life changes.

• SEND Considerations:

  • Activities scaffolded to cater for diverse cognitive and communication abilities.
  • Multi-sensory and alternative communication strategies employed.

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Learning Objectives

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

1. Describe what grief and loss mean and identify feelings associated with them.
2. Recognise that different people respond differently to grief and change.
3. Understand that change can be difficult but support mechanisms can help.
4. Reflect on personal feelings about change and know some strategies to cope.

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Resources

• Emotion cards with faces and names of feelings (e.g., sadness, anger, confusion).
• Visual storyboards or social stories illustrating grief and coping.
• Support options poster (counsellor, trusted adult, helpline).
• Whiteboard and markers.
• Calm-down sensory items (stress balls, textured cloths).
• Worksheets with simple prompts and pictorial cues.

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Lesson Structure

1. Welcome and Settling Activity (5 minutes)

• Greet students individually to establish a safe space.
• Briefly explain the session’s purpose in simple, clear language: “Today, we will learn about feelings we have when things change, especially when we lose someone or something important.”

2. Explicit Teaching: What is Grief and Loss? (10 minutes)

• Use visual storyboards to introduce grief and loss. For example, a comic strip about a character losing a pet or a friend moving away.
• Explain using simple terms: Grief is the feeling we get when we lose something or someone. It can make us feel many different emotions like sadness, anger, or confusion.
• Show emotion cards and ask students to name or match their feelings to those on the cards.
• Ask, "Has anyone felt like this when something changed?" (Encourage voluntary sharing; do not pressure.)

3. Different Responses to Grief (10 minutes)

• Discuss how different people show feelings in different ways – some might cry, some get quiet, others might get angry.
• Use role-play scenarios with two volunteers acting how people might respond differently to the same loss. Teachers can guide this (e.g., one student pretends to cry, another pretends to become quiet).
• Reinforce that every way is okay and normal.
• Optionally, incorporate sensory items to help students calm themselves if they start feeling overwhelmed.

4. Coping with Change and Support (15 minutes)

• Introduce the idea that change can be hard but there are ways to get help.
• Present the “Support Options” poster and explain roles of trusted adults, friends, school counsellor, and helplines in simple terms.
• Activity: In pairs or small groups, students match feelings/emotions cards to support options they think might help. For SEND students, provide templates with pictures to support understanding.
• Teach one coping strategy (e.g., deep breathing, counting to 10, using a calm-down object).

5. Reflection and Expression (10 minutes)

• Offer a creative outlet: students can choose to draw a picture or write/dictate a sentence about a time they felt change or loss (real or imagined) and how they felt or coped.
• For non-writing students, use provided sentence starters and emotive symbols.
• Allow voluntary sharing in a supportive circle if comfortable.

6. Plenary and Recap (5 minutes)

• Recap key points orally and visually: grief = feelings; people feel differently; support is there for you.
• Use a simple quiz or thumbs-up/thumbs-down questions to check understanding:
  • “Is it normal to feel sad after loss?”
  • “Can people show feelings in different ways?”
  • “Is there help if change feels hard?”
• End positively by acknowledging courage for talking about feelings.

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Assessment and Differentiation

• Formative assessment via observation during activities and responses to questions.
• Use emotion cards and creative work to gauge understanding.
• Provide differentiated sentence starters and pictorial supports for different ability levels.
• Encourage alternative communication (signing, AAC devices) as needed.
• Create a calm corner with sensory resources for students who may feel overwhelmed.

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Extension Ideas for Teachers

• Invite a school counsellor for a follow-up session on support options.
• Develop individual grief resilience plans for students experiencing recent loss, personalised to their needs.
• Incorporate mindfulness exercises in future lessons to build emotional regulation skills.

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This lesson plan aims to offer a safe, empathic learning environment aligned with the National Curriculum PSHE Education statutory guidance, explicitly addressing emotional literacy for SEND KS4 students. It combines explicit teaching, experiential learning, and reflective practices suited to diverse learners.