Lesson Overview

Featured Article: “As Families Grieve, Grandparents Step Up,” by Paula Span with photographs by Todd Heisler

In the United States, as many as 200,000 children have had a parent die from Covid-19. In the wake of those losses, other family members — often grandparents — frequently step up to support the grieving children.

In this lesson, you will learn about how grandparents and grandchildren are navigating new relationships after the death of a family member. Then, you will watch a film about a grief camp for young people or write a brief story about your relationship with your grandparent or another elder in your life.

Warm-Up

Analyze statistics about Covid-19 deaths.

Explore The New York Times’s tracker of Covid-19 cases and deaths. What do you notice about cases nationally and internationally? What about death rates?

Then, look at rates specifically in your state or region. How do deaths from Covid-19 in your area compare to the rest of country or world? Are you surprised by these statistics? Why or why not?

Questions for Writing and Discussion

Read the article or listen to the 15-minute embedded audio. Then, answer the following questions:

1. How have Covid-19 deaths affected the relationships between some grandparents and their grandchildren?

2. Choose one quote from the article that illustrates a positive aspect of this change.

3. Choose one quote that demonstrates the challenges and stresses that can arise from the new relationships.

4. What story do the photographs in this article tell? If you were to explain the main idea, or a primary theme, of the article using only three photographs, which three photographs would you choose? Why?

5. What forms of support do the young people in the article, and their grandparents, have as they cope with grief and navigate their changing relationships?

6. What is your reaction to the article? What did you learn? Were you able to relate to any of the stories or experiences documented in the article?

Going Further

Option 1: Reflect on your relationship with a grandparent or elder.

Do any of the relationships between grandparents and grandchildren remind you of your relationship with your grandparents or another elder in your community?

We recently asked students to respond to “Constancy in Candy,” which a reader submitted to the Tiny Love Stories column. In this brief story, Samantha Facciolo writes about her grandmother:

My grandmother kept a candy bowl on a table by her front door. Growing up, I would sneak butterscotches and strawberry sweets. During the pandemic, my grandmother moved into assisted living. On my first visit after lockdown, I saw how much of her 90-year life she had discarded to fit into her new residence. Yet, she’d saved the familiar bowl. Driving home, I discovered that she’d slipped its candy into my purse. Years before, when I had confessed my childhood thievery, she laughed. “Why do you think I kept it on that low table? It’s always been for you.”

• Do you have, or have you had, a close connection with a grandparent or an elder? What is, or was, your relationship like?

• What is one item, like the candy bowl belonging to Ms. Facciolo’s grandmother, that reminds you of this person?

Now, write a story of no more than 100 words about a grandparent or an elder who has been a part of your life. Post it in the comments or submit it to Tiny Love Stories.

Option 2: Learn about grief and young people.

Watch this Film Club about a camp for children and teens who have lost someone important. As you watch, think about how this film might connect with the stories of the young people that you read about in the featured article. You can also use our Film Club Double-Entry Journal (PDF) to help you remember specific moments from the film.

After watching the film, respond to the following questions in your journal or through a class discussion. Or share your answers in the comments section of the Film Club.

• What messages, emotions or ideas will you take away from this film? Why?

• How did the film relate to the article you read above? What was similar? What was different?

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