Seasons for Growth

a change, loss & grief education program for children

This eight-week program is for children aged 6 to 12 who have experienced grief and loss in their lives due to significant changes such as death or separation of parents.

Facilitated by Kate Pearce, qualified relationship counsellor, mediator and child consultant, Seasons for Growth is an innovative, evidence-based change, loss and grief education program that draws on the metaphor of the seasons to understand the experience of grief. It builds the knowledge and skills necessary to strengthen social and emotional wellbeing following significant loss by:

Exploring the impact of change and loss
Learning about effective ways to respond and adapt

Participants learn that they are not alone in their experience of change, loss and grief, and are able to build their communication, decision making and problem solving skills within the context of a safe and supportive peer group learning environment.

All Seasons for Growth programs are grounded in sound, person-centred educational principles. As such, our programs have been shown to be a very effective education intervention. The programs do not provide counselling or psychotherapy.

“Having other people with the same problem to talk to has really helped.”

— Antonio, 12

Taking enrolments

If you are interested in enrolling your child or you have any questions, please contact Kate via phone 0402 207 137 or email kate@kpfamilymatters.com.au

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Program Outline

Seasons for Growth is a small group program (max 10 participants) delivered over 8 sessions. Each participant receives a journal to complete throughout the program. The topics covered in each session of the program include:

Seasons and Change (autumn)
My story and grief reactions (winter)
Feelings and memories (spring)
Choices and moving forward (summer)

As the name ‘Seasons for Growth’ implies, the different seasons of the year provide a rich symbolic framework in which to explore issues of change and loss. Drawing on the wide variation in the seasons, both in Australia and elsewhere, the metaphor speaks to the ‘ups and downs’ of life, reflecting both the competence and vulnerability of children, as well as the unique ways different ‘seasons’ in life are experienced.

The four seasons are each linked to one of J William Worden's four tasks of grief (3rd edition, 2009). Worden's ‘task’ theory was originally developed to help understand bereavement. The Seasons for Growth program adapts these ‘tasks’ to help address other change and loss experiences, too.

What is different about Seasons for Growth?

Seasons for Growth is based on extensive research into how children, young people and adults process grief and loss.