24 • MODULE SIX: COPING WITH EMOTIONS
ACTIVITY FIVE
Managing Sadness
Group check in
The facilitator should not ask for personal experiences, as those experiences may be traumatic.
Remind the children that if they wish to remain silent, their feelings will be respected. An assistant
who is preferably a trained counselor should be present. If a child is still grieving, it is advisable to
have individual sessions with a counselor.- Refer to the mood meter to discuss the different levels of sadness. Ask the children what
causes a little sadness and what causes serious sadness. Ask if feelings of sadness change
over time. Children may bring up the subject of death and dying. Ask them what they think
happens when a person dies. Where do they go? Accept all answers. Say that everyone feels
happy and sad in his or her life. Happiness and sadness live side by side. Remind the children
that they can express their feelings in many ways. - Discuss how sadness can be expressed inside ourselves (without anyone else knowing what
you are experiencing) and outwardly in our behavior. Explain that if a river is flowing and we
block it, it may find another course. In the same way, if we feel very sad but do not express it
and block it, it may come out in different ways. After the children have stated what may
happen, list the ways sadness may be expressed:
Depressed;
No appetite;
Bedwetting;
Stop looking after one’s physical needs;
Disturbed sleep;
Headache or stomachache;
Bullying and getting angry;
Feel intense fear;
Poor performance at school;
Stealing; and/or
Hitting someone. - Ask the children how they would help a friend who is feeling sad. The list could look like this:
Hold the person’s hand while s/he cries;
Talk about it;
Bring some food that the friend likes and coax her/him to eat;
Just sit silently beside the friend;