When it comes to keeping your kids safe on Halloween, you may have some idea of the dangers lurking around dark corners on a night when ghosts come out to play. You have likely heard the horror stories of kids being snatched off the street by strangers in masks and candy riddled with razor blades, syringes, and poison.
While these incidents are few and far between, it never hurts to take extra precautions when the safety of your children is on the line. On the other hand, they may be getting old enough that they are starting to cringe at the thought of having you tag along while they go trick-or-treating with their friends. At some point, you are going to have to let your little birds leave the nest! But if you instill the right lessons and add a few safeguards for good measure, there’s no reason that they can’t enjoy a safe and happy Halloween without giving you a panic attack.
5 Halloween safety tips
- For starters, they should always travel in a pack. This must be a firm condition of them leaving the house without you on Halloween. Coordinate with other moms to ensure that all the kids are surrounded by friends when they descend on the neighborhood unattended by adult supervision.
- Next, you need to give them cell phones so that they can contact you in case of emergency and vice versa. And by the way, you don’t have to tell them that you activated the GPS tracking software that allows you to see where they are at all times via satellite (whoever came up with that one should win a medal). If they get off track, you can simply call to let them know you’re watching or go round them up. On the other hand, they may be more compliant if they feel your eyes on the back of their heads.
- Next, you’ll want to go over the game plan. Outline which areas are acceptable for them to venture into and then set a strict curfew (consider starting pretty early and letting them haggle a bit so they feel that they’ve won something – they may actually return on time this way).
- You should also go over contingencies in case of emergency. For example, help them formulate a course of action if they are approached by a stranger, harassed by older kids, asked to go into a house, or if they encounter other dangerous situations. Kids can’t always foresee these occurrences, but you can, so help them work out how they will deal with different scenarios so they aren’t caught completely by surprise and they can react quickly and decisively.
- Finally, there are several ways to ensure that they aren’t tempted to eat candy from strangers before you’ve had a chance to check it. Naturally, you may be reticent to get your child sugared up before sending them out on the streets with a group of friends. But if you give them a bag of pre-approved candy (something they like), they are much more likely to go along with your hands-off directive when it comes to their loot.
With a bit of preemptive planning, you can avoid a lot of the dangers of this spooky holiday and ensure that everyone has a good time.
Top Halloween safety tips was originally posted by ourkids.net. Our Kids is Canada's trusted source for information on private schools and summer camps.
