Halloween looks a little different around here this year. Trick-or-treating is canceled in some neighborhoods, or adapted to be more pandemic-friendly. In-school Halloween parties aren’t happening, and everyone is trying to figure out how to celebrate Halloween in a fun — and safe — way.
We still haven’t decided if/how our kids are trick-or-treating this year, but in the event that they aren’t, here are six ways they can still enjoy Halloween in a pandemic-friendly way. (Note and disclaimer: I’m not a doctor or an expert on infectious disease. I’m just a mom trying to give my kids a somewhat normal-ish Halloween)
1. Set up Outdoor Treat Stations
Do you have a family in your pod that you hang out with outdoors? This is the perfect way to celebrate with them! Invite them over to your backyard and set up various treat stations. We did this with neighbors and it was a perfect way to stay socially distant; the kids loved getting dressed up and going to the different treat stations to fill up their treat buckets with the candy in a semi-trick-or-treating fashion.
2. Plan a Neighborhood Halloween Scavenger Hunt
If your neighborhood is like mine, right now everyone has fun decor. With my kids, we plan on going on a scavenger hunt! I’m going to make a card with a picture of a few Halloween decorations we always see, like a ghost, witch, skeletons, tombstones, etc. The kids can put a sticker on the chart when they find them. And if they find all their items, it’s time for a treat!
3. Plan an Outdoor Movie Night
One of our COVID purchases this year was a projector, so we’ve been lucky enough to enjoy an outdoor movie with friends. There are plenty of movies that would make a perfect Halloween celebration; some of the seasonal favorites we’re enjoying now are “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “Coco” and “Frankenweenie.”
4. Stay At Home for a Drive-By Candy Parade
Do you have some friends or family that want to help out? Set up a time when you and your kids can be outside your house in costumes, and invite friends to drive by and throw candy at you! The kids can watch the cars go by and try to catch the candy in their treat baskets. Ask friends to wear costumes for the ride. Offer to return the favor and drive by their homes later!
5. Host a Zoom Costume Party
Get dressed up and invite some friends/family to a virtual costume party! My kids don’t have much of an attention span for a long Zoom meeting, but I could see them enjoying a virtual Halloween story reading from a grandparent, along with some Halloween dance music.
6. Hide and Find Treats
If we decide against trick-or-treat this year, this is what we’ll be doing on Halloween. We are going to be using the candy we would be using for trick or treaters and hiding it throughout our house! We will set a timer and see how long it will take for our kids to find all the candy and drop it in their Halloween baskets. If you have older kids, you could also include clues or make it more challenging for them to find the candy.
What are you doing for Halloween this year? Are you trick-or-treating?