Around the ages of seven or eight, children attri- bute life more to movements in nature, and not so much to inanimate objects like toys. A cloud is alive as it blows across the sky. Water is alive when it gurgles and runs in a stream. Seven or eight year olds frequently become fearful of death because they realize for the first time that it is real. No matter who dies, they may feel devastated at the thought of losing a parent. Obviously, the death of a parent is extremely traumatic at this age. Some of their questions may allude to fears of their own death. Death seems to be an attacker who takes life. Although able to understand the finality of death, many of the factors of early childhood still apply. It is important for children of this age to express their sadness, anger, fear and guilt. Because they now understand that people die, they may become interested in what happens
after death. As they begin to relate to some of the mysteries of life, they are able to relate to some of the mysteries of death. A child of this age is concerned not only about death as a concept, but also about the mechanisms of death. They may ask questions about why the person died or seek information about
Children age seven to twelve begin to understand the reality of death.
who or what caused the death. They will then direct anger toward the someone or something that caused it. If the child wants to talk about how the crash happened, you can explain some of the events, like the substance impaired driv- ing crash that caused the death.
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