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Feelings Pizza

Suggested Group(s): Young/Middle

Purpose: To explore and express feelings in order to be able to approach the pain of a death

Task/need: Approaching the pain of loss, living on the grief spiral

Activity Setup Ideas:

  • Begin with a discussion of feelings and how as we grieve we feel different feelings at different times. Point out that even two people in the same family might feel very different things from each other. All feelings are okay. Make sure the group members understand what each feeling word means and possibly give examples of different feelings if the group members are unsure of their meaning.

Materials:

  • Brown construction paper cut into pizza shaped slices
  • Pizza toppings cut from construction paper or clip art from internet. These must be small enough to fit multiple toppings on the pizza slices.
  • A legend of what feeling each pizza topping represents
  • Shredded yellow paper for cheese
  • Empty clean pizza box (optional)

Description: Each group member is given a brown pizza shaped slice of construction paper. They are instructed to write the name of the person who died on the “crust” of their pizza. They are then instructed to choose the toppings that represent the feelings they have had following the death and to put as much or as little of these toppings on their pizza as they feel they have experienced.

After everyone has completed their slice of pizza, the pizza slices can be joined back into a pizza pie and placed in the empty pizza box as a symbol of the unity of their group.

Activity Wrap Up Ideas:

  • Each pizza slice will look different from the other slices. It can be pointed out to the group members that people grieve differently and feel different things at different times. However, the pizza is a symbol of the other people who are out there that are grieving too, just like them, and they are not alone in what they are going through.

Additional Resources: