As Travis County families string up the spooky decor, light up the jack-o-lanterns, and put the finishing touches on your frightful costumes, now is the perfect time to have important conversations with your little ghosts and goblins around Halloween safety.
To make sure everyone’s spooky night stays as safe as possible, the Center for Child Protection’s Education Team has prepared some quick tips to keep in mind before hitting the streets for some trick-or-treating this year.
🎃 Stay Spooky, Stay Outside
The best Halloween thrills happen from a safe distance, where treats are handed out by a familiar face or trusted neighbor.
It’s important that tricks and / or treats should stay outside of homes and cars at all times. Kids should always wait on the porch or doorstep with a parent or guardian nearby.
The safest fright is under the porch light! So stick together and stay outside.
🧙🏼🧟 Safety in Numbers: Don’t Haunt Alone
Halloween is always more fun when experienced together – so don’t be a lone wolf, gather your pack!
All small werewolves and wizards should be accompanied by multiple trusted adults, like friends or family, while trick-or-treating.
This means there are extra eyes on the lookout, making the night safer and more magical for everyone.
Kids can also practice being a fang-tastic friend by not letting their buddies roam alone.
And grown-ups, remember: even vampires need a coven – so keep an eye on your candy crusaders as they roam the night!
👻 Safety Code: Ghost Out When Needed
Ghosting doesn’t have to be a bad thing, especially on Halloween!
It’s important for kids to have a smart exit plan, so establish a “ghost out” code word they can use if they feel unsafe or want to leave a Halloween party or event.
If they use this word, you’ll know to come pick them up immediately.
What a boo-tiful way to make sure our superheroes and skeletons feel comfortable asking for help.
🗺️ Familiar Frights: Stick to Known Streets
No bones about it, safety’s a treat, so stick to the streets you know!
When older kids head out for Halloween night, make sure they map out a safe route together so parents, guardians and their fellow scare squad know what haunts they’ll be floating through that night.
So avoid eerie detours this Halloween and stick to your boo-levard!
Discover more ways to protect the children in your life – visit protectaustinkids.org for a range of webinars and resources.
