If you are a Van Nuys parent of school-age kids, chance are good that they are already excited about the first upcoming fall holiday. Halloween and harvest celebrations are a great chance for children to indulge in a little harmless fantasy as they dress up in costumes and face-paint before setting out on their rounds of trick-or-treating.
But as parents, it's natural to worry about the kids' safety. It's very easy for them to get too caught up in the excitement of the holiday and forget to be safety-conscious at all times.
Make safety a priority this Halloween
With a little help from moms and dads, kids can wear their Halloween finery to go trick-or-treating, have a grand time, get a big candy haul and make it back home safely. The following tips from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) may be helpful.
- Trick-or-treat in groups or with an adult. There is definitely safety in numbers. Most parents will want to accompany their younger ghouls door-to-door, but in a group setting, 'tweens might be okay to spread their (bat)wings a bit and forage on their own.
- Buy or make costumes with reflective material or strips on them. Make sure that motorists and pedestrians alike can see your child both coming and going.
- Costumes should require minimal accessories. Your child already has to be responsible for a candy bucket. Saddling them with another object just increases the chances that they might lose it. If you allow them to accessorize, make sure that any swords or other items are flexible and soft. The best accessory is a small handheld flashlight to illuminate their paths.
- Eschew plastic masks for your kiddos. Instead, use washable makeup as a disguise.
- Make a rule that all treats must be inspected before the kids eat them. To avoid slip-ups, make sure to send them off with a full belly so they won't be (as) tempted.
- Keep costumes at mid-shin length and never longer than ankle-length. Otherwise, they could trip and fall into the path of a car.
Be prepared to take action
In a worst-case scenario, if your child gets struck by a car while trick-or-treating, you will need to hold the driver liable for their injuries. The first step toward resolution is filing a claim for damages.
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