Note to the Reader:
“Where’s Grandpa” provides many opportunities for conversation with your youngster when he needs to understand what is happening at the time of the death of a loved one and needs to understand that his own confusion and feelings are not unique. The story’s youthful narrator recounts common incidents and quandaries that encourage discussion.
For example:
- Why did Mama forget about fixing breakfast? Are other unexpected changes in the youngster’s daily routine likely to happen in the coming days?
- What is a comfortable response for a child to use when an adult expresses sympathy to the child?
- Why didn’t Grandma talk to the child in the living room? Was the child “in the way?” Is the child likely to feel insecure and lonely again in the coming days?
- Why did being with the ladies make Mama and the youngster feel better?
- When the child’s own young friends learn about the death, are they apt to feel awkward and not know what to say to him? What can the child do to ease this initial awkwardness?
- Why would something as simple as a wilted flower in a lapel make adults cry?
- How does the funeral experienced by your youngster differ from the one described in “Where’s Grandpa?” What is the function of Mr. Shelley, the funeral director?
- Would your youngster benefit from a discussion about cremation?
- Do your child’s religious beliefs suggest discussion topics?
Perhaps discussion with your child will bring to the surface additional concerns and worries that the youngster is confronting and would like to explore.
