13 Halloween Safety Tips

Halloween is one of our favorite holidays here at Bright Beginnings Preschool. It truly harbors the essence of fall, especially for us Virginians. Freshly picked pumpkins greeting us home on our porches, carved or uncarved, they signal Halloween is near! The cool breezes, rushing through piles of newly fallen leaves on the ground with the most beautiful backdrop of big beautiful trees surrounding us in vibrant fall colors – we could go on for days about how amazing the season of fall is! Halloween is so exciting for our little birdies as they adorn themselves with costumes and embellishments to transform them into their favorite character for the night! This time proves to be quite a stressful time for parents as we want for our little ones to have fun and the time of their lives however we want to keep them as safe as possible in the process. Here are some tips and tricks to help decrease the stress and increase the safety and fun (especially regarding trick-or- treating) for All Hallows Eve!

1. Choose or craft costumes that contain bright colors, if not, apply reflective tape to darker costumes (or dark portions of costumes) to minimize chance of losing track of your trick or treater
2. Masks may be super fun to wear however they can be a hazard as they often partially block your little birdie’s eyesight while they are trick or treating and the darker it gets the more their vision is impaired while under a mask. Safer alternatives to use instead of masks include – non-toxic face paint, hats, embellishments that do not block eyesight, those options should be able to complete the Halloween look!
3. Make sure adult (or two) are available to supervise. If more than 4 or 5 children, it may be better to have 2 adults. The more kids, the more supervision is needed.
4. For older birdies – make sure they know your cell/home number in case of separation.
5. Plant to trick or treat familiar streets – around their own neighborhood or community.
6. Check out alternatives to neighborhood trick or treating – this includes malls, shopping strips, in Charlottesville’s case, our very own University of Virginia offers up their spacious and wonderful Lawn for families to enjoy Halloween fun! More planned and more organized = more safe
7. Keep phone use to a minimum, keep heads up and alert – it’s so easy for us to want to snap as many cute pictures as we can and post them for others to see – however this distracts us from keeping alert for anything from moving cars to straying children.
8. Watch for cars turning or backing up – remind children not to run into the street – they are on a mission, a mission for CANDY remind them to stay alert!
9. Have children carry glow-sticks if flashlights are too heavy.
10. Make sure costume does not drag to prevent trips and falls – short enough to walk easily throughout their trick or treating route.
11. Review how to call 911.
12. Popular trick or treating times are between 5:30 and 9:30 pm so stay alert during that peak time. If able to, go a bit before so that you miss the big crowds.
13. Wait until you're home to check and sort through treats – with all the hoopla and chaos of trick or treating, waiting until home to check, sort and eat gives everyone an opportunity to regroup focus and ensure that all candy is safe to eat.