Single parents will deal with grief  according to child's age. Dealing with death is different from dealing with divorce.

Single parents deal with grief from death of a parent according to the child's age.

Single Parents Deal with Grief by Age.
By Pat McChristie

Children do not always understand the finality of death.

Listen to your child's concerns without saying he/she is wrong to have these normal feelings. Then try to soothe his/her fears.

Pre-school age children commonly associate death with a trip or journey. They may feel that the deceased person is away temporarily or is only sleeping. If they associate death with sleeping, they may fear going to sleep.

Children from age six to eight years of age seem more concerned about the process of death itself. They may ask if the dead person can read or eat or ask any number of seemingly foolish questions. Take the child seriously, answer the questions, and welcome more questions. What may seem silly to you is important to your child.

Single parents need to remember that children do not think they can die.

Preadolescent and adolescent children do understand that death is final. However, they don't believe that they can die. Their grief may cause reckless or irresponsible actions.

Be available to talk without preaching. Point out the risky or irresponsible behavior and ask the child why he/she is behaving this way. Keep channels of communication open and non-judgmental.

Bereaved children often develop fantasy lives or fantasy reunions that concern their deceased or absent parent. They develop feelings that certain things go against a parent's wishes even though they may be very much the wishes of the present parent. It is hard to deal with these "ghost" parents.