For many of the estimated 172 million of us who celebrate Halloween, this year will not be the same. It’s not great news, especially, if you have Halloween-aged kids. As parents, we only get a certain number of annual tickets in the front row seat to our kiddos’ Halloween joy. We’re allowed to be bummed out—for a minute. Then, we really just ought to think like kids.
Kids & Halloween
During times like these kids are simply better at adapting than we are because they tend not to focus far less on the loss of what is “ideal.” Our adult brains have a better sense of time, so we carry with us all of the things we’ve lost out in in this pandemic, and kids really just live in the moment.
So, we decided to take our Halloween cues from them. The Tinkergarten team talked with 30 kids ages 3 to 8 around the country about what they loved most about Halloween. Then, we put our heads together to imagine ways to deliver on the parts of Halloween that truly matter to kids—even in the year of COVID!
‘Tis a Season, Not a Night
Listening to kids, many of the things they love about Halloween are not directly related to trick-or-treating, large-scale events, or October 31st itself. So, why not shift our focus from a single big night to make Halloween more like a festival instead?
Why not celebrate Halloweek—7 days full of things that make the Halloween season magical?!
Costumes & Pretending
The chance to don a costume and pretend to be someone or something else is clearly at the heart of Halloween for kids. And it makes total sense: kids’ brains more easily blend reality and fantasy, which is how they develop the foundation for higher-order thinking skills.
But again, that joy isn’t limited to Halloween night itself. In our house, so much delight is derived from discussing, planning, procuring, and test-driving costumes—all long before Halloween! And in our interviews, one 6-year-old remembered being bummed that his mom wouldn’t let him wear his costume all the time last year. “She said I’d break it, but I just want to wear it!”
TIP: Lean hard into the costume. Welcome kids to brainstorm what they’d like to be. If you’re crafty, plan for how you can make the costume. Not crafty? Just buy your costume a little early this year so kids have extra time to enjoy wearing it.
Embrace the Magic of the Season
So much of what makes Halloween special is the magic. Try out the following easy, playful activities to add a dose of magic to your holiday…or week!
Explore Pumpkin Seeds: Pumpkins are full of magic, whether or not you turn them into jack-o-lanterns. They also offer marvelous ways to balance your child’s sensory system and teach early math and science lessons!
Make Pumpkin Boats: Explore floating and sinking and even pretend to help tiny friends set sail in your very own pumpkin boats!
Stir up Halloween Brew: Grab a pot (or your already carved out pumpkin), some water and head outside to start making your very own “Halloween Brew.” Add fall scents like cloves or cinnamon sticks or “secret ingredients” (aka baking soda and vinegar) to tickle the senses and add discovery.
Parades & Gatherings
One thing that several older kids mentioned was missing school events and the chance to see all the costumes other kids were wearing. We get it.
As an elementary school principal in Sleepy Hollow, New York, I had the incredible pleasure of presiding over our Halloween costume parade. It was the highlight of the kids’ year and mine and it took only a mere four loops through the school parking lot in the middle of the day to feel the magic and snap a great photo for parents.
TIPS: For a little kid, parades can happen in many ways, and on many different scales—they can even happen in the living room. Meet up with friends in costume and go for a socially distant hike or walk around your local park. Enjoy careful playdates with the small circle of friends you see often. Video conferences in costume are fun, too. Add some spooky music and turn it into a party! Kids can see themselves and each other all dressed up on screen, and far away family and friends will get a boost from being part of the magic.
Add the Sweets!
And, yes, our young interviewees may have mentioned the candy a few times, too. There is something spectacular about just walking up to your neighbor’s house and getting candy in quantities and varieties nearly all our surveyed kiddos only see on Halloween. It’s hard to beat. But, if your house is like ours, it’s also wild to navigate the highs and lows of early November as small bodies process all that candy—so maybe we could still have sweets but enjoy a year without all of the gluttony?
TIP: Weave sweets into your Halloween, even if you can’t go door to door for candy. Build-in some excitement by talking with kids or doing a little research about sweet treats you could make or buy that you don’t usually have, or that are just SUPER delicious.
Then, make savoring those sweets part of your Halloween this year.
Want to build in a little of the thrill? Hide candy around the yard or neighborhood and welcome your kiddos, and maybe even a few close friends, to go on a hunt!
Or, in some places, if you want to trick or treat in a safe, distant way, you can team up with a smaller circle of families to walk or drive between each other’s homes and “trick-or-treat” just between the few of you, keeping your distance as you go.
However, your Halloween or Halloweek shape up this year, we wish you a most spooky, special, and sweet holiday!
For more information, visit tinkergarten.com/halloween
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