Your child needs your help to understand death. So it’s best to explain what has happened as simply and truthfully as you can. For example, ‘I have some sad news. Your Aunty Sal died this morning’.
Using the word ‘death’ can avoid problems too. If you say that someone ‘passed away’ or has ‘gone to sleep’, your child might be confused or frightened. For example, a child who is told that ‘Grandpa has gone to sleep forever’ might get scared of sleeping because he’s afraid he’ll never wake up.
If you feel very uncomfortable talking About death, you might need to practise with another adult first. You could go through what you’ll say and how you’ll answer your child’s questions. Or you might like to write down a few notes as reminders.
It can also be helpful to think About what you’ll say if you don’t know the answer to your child’s question. It’s OK to say something like, ‘I don’t know but I’ll try to find out’.

Grieving is a process that can take weeks, months, and years. Sometimes as a child matures, they will reprocess the death based on their new understanding and life experiences. Share your feelings and grief work with your child. A child will take comfort in knowing they are not alone in how they feel and they will look to the adults for role models in how to deal with grief.

Children need and want to talk About their loved one and their loss. Be patient and a good listener. Reassure the child they are loved and there is a plan for their care. This is especially important if the loved one who died is a parent.