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Faith Formation: Grief & Trauma

Resources including: Children & Family Curricula & Storytime; Confirmation/Affirmation of Baptism; Denominational Resources; Tween & Teen Mental and Spiritual Health; Sexuality & Identity; and Online/At-Home Tech

Welcome

Welcome to The Ministry Lab's curated list of resources to help caregivers and parents engage youth in conversations around grief and trauma. Here you'll find:

  • Books & Downloads
  • Blogs, Podcasts & Articles
  • Websites & Curricula
  • Videos and Webinars

See also our Contemplative & Mental Health Practices for Children & Youth and/or Hope & Resilience guides for developing self-awareness and tools for navigating distress, anxiety, and trauma.

If you don't find a resource to fit your need, don't hesitate to consult with The Ministry Lab's director, Emily Meyer, who is happy to assist you.

Books & Downloads - for Tweens/Teens

9781640654822: Bad Things, Good People, and God: A Guide for Teens     The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk, M.D.     Call Us What We Carry by Amanda Gorman          Healing Your Grieving Heart for Teens     Cover of Something Happened in Our Park     The Struggle to Be Strong: True Stories by Teens About Overcoming Tough  Times | Wonder Book     Oneing: Trauma ~ PDF Download     To My Beloveds: Letters on Faith, Race, Loss, and Radical Hope     When a Friend Dies: A Book for Teens About Grieving & Healing | Free Spirit  Publishing

death and grief chapter books.jpg

Websites for Tweens/Teens

Trauma Stewardship Tiny Survival Guide | Trauma-Informed Utah |  PACEsConnection      

Trauma Stewardship Institute offers several free, downloadable tools, including Decision Fatigue & Cognitive Overload, a Gratitude Log, a Map for Managing One's Day, their Tiny Survival Guide, When Experiencing Overwhelm & Trauma, and a book and gift package selection for people walking through trauma.

iBme's website is informative. Retreats and courses may be life-changing.

Scarleteen discusses COVID-19 from the perspective of sexual and mental health for young people. They offer free text, message board, and live chat options for immediate help for kids suffering abuse, or those feeling depressed, anxious or confused. Includes links to additional resources for mental and sexual health questions.

Books for Caregivers

          In Deep Waters: Spiritual Care for Young People in a Climate Crisis     Picture of Not Forsaken     Mental Health          When Kids Ask Hard Questions, Volume 2: More Faith-Filled Responses for Tough Topics

Resources for Parents & Caregivers

Minnesota Reformer shared Minnesota Mental Health Professionals Say Climate Concerns Driving Patients to Depression by Christopher Ingraham, January 04, 2024.

Can your congregation become a place for young people to process complex emotions and develop resilience and hope by participating - with adults who are passionate about climate care - in taking action to mitigate damage and restore health to all?

close up of hands in prayer in yogaHelping Teens Lament

By Dietrich Kirk

Responding to Student Trauma

Poetry Unbound: incorporate poetry into a personal or group contemplative practice, worship/liturgical element, or fodder for small group discussions among tweens, teens and/or adults.

Listen to the trailer and subscribe on Apple PodcastsSpotifyGoogle PodcastsOvercast, or wherever you listen.

shared Nine Tips for Talking to Kids about Trauma, following the Paris attacks of 2015. The tips are just as relevant, today.

provides links to resources and intervention sites, along with tips for working with children, teens and families, an entire page of Resources in the Wake of Community Trauma and Beyond, and includes Trauma Resources for Children and Families; contact info for their Mobile Crisis Mental Health Services may be helpful for some families to have on hand.

Websites & Curricula

Teenage Archetype Card Deck

shares several resources about well-being in Covid-19 times, including this list geared toward caring for Youth.

Virginia Theological Seminary’s building faith blog talks about the effects of trauma on faith in youth and their Trauma-Informed Tools for Youth Camp Ministry can be adapted for at-home or small group use.

offers a 4-week curriculum on anxiety and faith for high school students.

Judicatory Resources

United Church of Christ Minnesota ConferenceThe MN Conference UCC Faith Formation Resources page includes resources for Talking with Children about Violence and Anti-Racism:

Anti-Racism

In Our Library

     A Still Quiet Place For Teens: A Mindfulness Workbook to Ease Stress and Difficult Emotions     When Kids Ask Hard Questions: Faith-filled Responses for Tough Topics