Don’t Get Tricked While Trick-or-Treating
Kids look forward to Halloween more than most holidays of the year, and for good reason: it’s fun, they get to dress up, and the night ends with a pillowcase filled with candy. Halloween is also a potentially dangerous holiday with many kids walking around unsupervised and thus vulnerable to sticky situations. To avoid any scary experiences with your young ones (besides haunted houses, of course!), here are some do’s and don’ts to ensure a fun-filled and safe Halloween.
Do:
Your research
Find good neighborhoods to take your children to ahead of time. Not all neighborhoods in NYC are appropriate for trick-or-treating. This is a good list of kid-friendly neighborhoods that are safe and have the best bounty (candy galore!)
Take basic safety precautions
Always make sure your kids are supervised during trick-or-treating. Be sure to carry a flashlight and always be careful crossing the street, etc. Don’t skip out on safety measures you would take on a daily basis just because it’s a holiday. In fact, it’s even more of a reason to be careful!
Examine candy after trick-or-treating
This rule is a classic! We’re not saying you’ll find razor blades in your child’s fun-size Snickers bar, but they definitely should not be eating open or unwrapped Halloween foods. The only reason you want your child feeling sick is because they ate all that sugar!
Don’t:
Trick-or-treat late at night
Take your child and their friends out before night falls. This gives you the opportunity to show your kids where they’ll be going and any boundaries that need to be set.
Enter a stranger’s home
This may be common sense to you, but make sure your children are well aware of this fact. A good rule of thumb is to “stick to the stoop.” That’s where all the candy is anyway!
Get caught in the cold
It’s not quite winter, but late October nights can be chilly! Make sure to check the weather before going out. It might clash with your child’s costume, but the coat will be well worth the extra weight when the temperature dips.
Forget that Halloween should be fun
Sometimes there’s so much stress about getting your child the perfect costume and making sure they are safe that you completely miss the entire point of the holiday. It’s a day when kids (and adults!) can adopt a completely new identity and enjoy sweets. What fun! If you’re looking for pre or post trick-or-treating festivities (or even want to replace the tradition entirely), be sure to check out this list of free Halloween events for kids in NYC.