With the celebration of Halloween comes the reality that the kids in your life will be wearing costumes, navigating dark, busy streets and popping in-and-out of strangers’ front stoops. In preparation for the big night, we thought we’d share some safety tips for a safe and enjoyable night. Hopefully you can use these tips to keep the kids safe and stress levels low: Map out an acceptable route. Agree on a route or a section of a neighborhood that everyone sticks to and that the children are very familiar with. That way if anyone gets separated you’ll know where to look and they’ll know how to find their way back home. Use a buddy system. There’s truly safety in numbers, and once kids hit the age of 12 it’s unlikely they’ll want to stay by your side the entire night. Make sure each kid is assigned a buddy to lower the chances of anyone ending up alone. Also, talk through what steps they should take should they get separated to get help. You can also set up apps to share locations so you can pinpoint where everyone is if needed. Designate a return time. Make sure all kids know the time they’re expected to be home by and then make sure they have watches or phones to tell the time. Stay on sidewalks. Make this rule a must, along with looking both ways before crossing the street and only crossing at corners. And remember that it’s not only cars in streets that can cause injuries. Lawns this time of years are full of decor that isn’t visible in the dark. Stay well-lit. Affix a piece of reflector tape on the front and back of all costumes. You can buy this tape easily on Amazon or in sporting areas of stores. Also consider putting a lit flashlight in every candy sack and a glow necklace around every neck. Keep costumes short. Prevent injuries and tears by making sure costumes aren’t long enough to cause falls. Also, be aware of anything that could catch on things or make it extra difficult to move quickly should the need arise. Stay off of devices. It’s hard enough to walk through crowded streets in the dark and keep track of kids running amok. Throw in the distraction of a smartphone and you’re likely to lose track of someone or get hurt yourself. Stay focused on the kids. Drive slow. At some point in the evening you may be behind the wheel. Drive extra slow and assume that at any moment a kid could be in front of your car, especially when entering and exiting driveways. Check the candy! Do a thorough sweep through the candy and throw away anything that’s been opened, not in the original wrapper or simply looks odd. You can never be too careful. Feel free to pass along this list of tips to anyone else who’s trick-or-treating this Halloween. Trick or treat! |
