Tragic Event Resource Hub: Supporting Youth After School or Community Violence

When tragedy strikes – whether through school shootings, community violence, or other traumatic events – families and educators often struggle to find the right words and resources to support their children. These moments can feel overwhelming, but you are not alone. The Tragic Event Resource Hub offers practical guidance, expert insights, and free tools to help parents, caregivers, support professionals and educators navigate difficult conversations and foster emotional support as youth process grief and fear.

Conversation Starters:

• Responding to Tragedy: How to talk with children about traumatic events. Also available in Spanish.
• Talking to Children about Tragic Events in the News: Created by the Coalition to Support Grieving Students
• Talking to Children about Terrorist Attacks and School and Community Shootings in the News by National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement
• Explaining Homicide to Children by Lauren Schneider. Also available in Spanish
• Tips & Scripts when Supporting Youth During a Traumatic Event: Created in collaboration by Eluna and National Drug Endangered Children.

Postcard Pointers: Top tips from the field of childhood bereavement support

• Postcard Pointers: Mass Shooting Grief
• Postcard Pointers: Homicide Grief

Activities:

• The Hug Jar: A creative way to help children express their needs for a hug when navigating big feelings.
• Emotions Map: A video explaining this expressive activity using colors and shapes to explore emotions allowing youthto explain how they are feeling without using words.
• Stepping In or Out of Grief: A coping skills activity for all ages to explore ways to step into your feelings associated with grief and ways to step out of your grief, even if momentarily to focus your mind and energy on something else. Both are valid and valuable strategies to have in your toolkit.
• Draw It Out: a therapeutic activity book for elementary and middle-aged youth with complex and confusing emotions. Developed under the guidance of 27 mental health experts, the age-appropriate, research-based prompts serve as a springboard for courageous conversations
• Let’s Help by Sesame Workshop: A Guide for Grown-Ups Helping Children Through the Toughest Times

Videos:

• Offering Comfort in Scary Times: A video by Sesame Workshop to let kids know it’s good to ask questions about scary or confusing things happening around them.
• Talking About “Big Feelings”: A video by Sesame Workshop to encourage kids to explore and express a range of feelings.
• Truth Be Told, Tell the Truth: Talking to Children About Suicide and Violent Deaths A video of families sharing their insights from lived experience.

Books for Children (Ages 3 – 8):

• Once I Was Very Very Scared by Chandra Ghosh Ippen. A little squirrel announces that he was once very, very, scared and finds out that he is not alone. Lots of little animals went through scary experiences, but they react in different ways. Turtle hides and gets a tummy ache, monkey clings, dog barks, and elephant doesn’t like to talk about it. They need help, and they get help from grown-ups who help them feel safe and learn ways to cope with difficult feelings. This story was can help children, ages 3 – 8, and grown-ups understand how stress and traumatic events can affect children and ways to help them. **
• The Breaking News by Sarah Lynne Reul. When devastating news rattles a young girl’s community, her normally attentive parents and neighbors are suddenly exhausted and distracted. At school, her teacher tells the class to look for the helpers―the good people working to make things better in big and small ways. She wants more than anything to help in a BIG way, but maybe she can start with one small act of kindness instead . . . and then another, and another. Small things can compound, after all, to make a world of difference.**
• A Terrible Thing Happened by Cary Pillo and Margaret M. Holmes. This gently told and tenderly illustrated story is for children, ages 5-9, who have witnessed any kind of violent or traumatic episode, including physical abuse, school or gang violence, accidents, homicide, suicide, and natural disasters such as floods or fire. **

Books for Youth (Ages 9-12):

• Healing Days: A Guide for Kids Who Have Experienced Trauma by Susan Farber Straus. A useful book for youth ages 8 – 11 to read with a parent, caregiver, or therapist, Healing Days emphasizes that children are not to blame for what happened, and that they can get help and look forward to a happy future. Covering the feelings, thoughts, and behaviors that many kids have after a bad and scary thing happen, kids will begin to understand their response to the trauma and learn some strategies for feeling safer, more relaxed, and more confident.**
• Simon Sort of Says by Erin Bow is a middle-grade novel about a boy who survives a school shooting and moves to a quiet town to escape media attention. Through humor, friendship, and quirky adventures, Simon begins to heal from trauma while navigating grief and hope.**
• The Golden Hour by Niki Smith is a middle-grade graphic novel about Manuel, a seventh grader coping with PTSD after witnessing a school shooting. Through photography and unexpected friendships on a rural farm, Manuel begins to heal, rediscover joy, and find hope. This tender, visually rich story explores trauma, resilience, and the power of connection.

Books for Teens and Young Adults:

• This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp is a gripping teen & YA novel that unfolds over 54 harrowing minutes during a school shooting in Opportunity, Alabama. Told from multiple student perspectives, it explores fear, survival, and the ripple effects of violence on friendships, family, and community. This intense, emotional story offers a raw look at trauma and resilience.**
• EXPLORE MORE BOOKS to support children and teens after school or community violence.

Educator Guides:

• Guidelines for Responding to a Death of a Student or School Staff: Created by the Coalition to Support Grieving Students
• Supporting Grieving Students in the School Setting: A Guide for School Personnel Created by Our House

Caregiver Guides:

• Eluna’s Caregiver Guidebook includes supportive insights & interactive activities to accompany caregivers through the waves of grief & loss. With a personal tone, the Guidebook welcomes & walks alongside caregivers with the guiding principle, “How do we grieve together as a family?”
• Dealing with Sudden Death in Adolescence is a practical, 8-page guide providing insight into understanding an adolescent’s developmental stage and how that informs their reaction to sudden death and grief.

Support Programs:

• Camp Erin® is the largest free national network of grief camps for kids, teens, and families who have experienced the death of a significant person in their lives. Campers attend day and overnight programs that combine grief support and education with fun camp activities.
• Camp Erin Online provides free, online support for families to come together, learn ways to navigate grief, and connect with others who have shared experiences. Through ongoing family grief support groups and creative grief expression events, families can be intentional about setting aside time and space to reconnect and remember together.
• The Eluna Resource Center offers confidential, personalized support in English and Spanish as well as a comprehensive online library of resources and referrals for youth and families impacted by addiction, grief and related complex challenges. On a mission to educate and equip, the Eluna Resource Center also offers Community Conversations, Care Packages, and the ability to save and share customized lists of resources within your community.

**Eluna is an affiliate of Bookshop.org and a percentage of your purchase will generate a commission to directly support The Eluna Resource Center.