Maybe it’s hearing about friends, driving home from a dance, who get into a car wreck that no one survives. Or a fellow student—the one who wears a bandanna to hide what chemotherapy has done to her hair—one day fails to show up for homeroom. Or an announcement over the school’s PA system: “There will be a memorial service this afternoon…” For many young people, this will be their first exposure to death. How can teachers and school administrators help guide them through the experience? This program features Camp Comfort Zone, in Virginia, where viewers meet teens who have come to spend a weekend of talking, enjoying the outdoors, and sharing their grief over someone they’ve lost. The stories range from suicide, to sudden death, to terminal illness, and as the camp weekend progresses, viewers see how veteran campers help first-timers release their feelings. As healing and personal growth continue, an amazingly positive spirit, in most cases, actually overshadows the sadness.

Teens Dealing with Death includes expert advice from Dr. Elena Lister, clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at Cornell University Medical College, New York City, and the collaborating psychoanalyst at the Columbia Psychoanalytic Center as well as the co-author of I Will Remember You: A Guidebook Through Grief For Teens. Dr. Lister shares her own personal experience of losing her daughter and offers suggestions on where teens can go for support and help in their communities. A viewable/printable instructor’s guide is available online. Correlates to the National Health Education Standards. A Cambridge Educational Production. (29 minutes)