Art With Heart – Draw It Out
Art with Heart makes therapeutic books for children and teens using a blended approach that helps children draw, write, and ultimately overcome the hardships they face. Using Art With Heart books, children are encouraged to engage with their emotions through cognitive behavioral, narrative, and art therapies along with social and emotional learning skills. Art with Heart’s evidence-based approach has proven that by completing an entire book, children and teens will learn increasingly about themselves, identifying their support system while building a vocabulary for their emotions.
Draw It Out is Art with Heart’s book for elementary-aged children who have experienced loss, whether that be the loss of a family member, another person close to them, or a more ambiguous loss. This sample page is an example of the book’s exercises and something you can print out to try with or give to a child. These pages aren’t typically offered alone, as the books are designed to guide children through a progressive healing journey. The “Me Time” page helps children understand that they won’t grieve all the time, and that’s okay. By identifying activities that help them feel better, children gain coping skills and self-soothing techniques they can use into adulthood.
By spending some time alone with their feelings, children may be more willing to approach parents, guardians, or other adults close to them with more openness later. For that reason, Art with Heart recommends allowing the project to be self-directed, but you can also print two copies and work side by side. The Draw It Out Caregiver’s Companion gently educates adults on the best ways to speak to children about grief.
To purchase Draw It Out, the Caregiver’s Companion, or another Art with Heart book, visit artwithheart.org.
