Before Halloween go to a store and look at the many different costumes that people will be wearing. Help children to see that what might appear to be scary on the outside is not necessarily threatening on the inside. Go see a movie in the theater such as Goosebumps or Pan. Riding a rollercoaster or reading a mystery together can be fun and a bit hair-raising. Find things that makes scary into exciting and unpredictable, rather than anxiety-producing and frightening. Here are some ways you can help make scary good. Because many childhood fears are unrealistic, it’s important to give your child the skills necessary to overcome some scariness. A little bit of scary can be exciting and help children realistically understand their fears, learn to make light of them and figure out how to seek out help and support to overcome them. Halloween, with its make-believe ghosts, witches, vampires and other monsters, is a great chance to learn how to handle a small amount of fear and fright. It’s imperative that adults help kids to manage their fears and focus on only the types of things that they can control. Most well-adjusted adults have learned to compartmentalize their fears about scary things such as terrorism, global warming, diseases and school shootings otherwise they would be paralyzed and unable to take care of their present needs and responsibilities.

We live in a world full of dangers and horrors that give kids and adults a legitimate reason to be scared. Who can forget the first time one watched “The Wizard of Oz” and saw the Wicked Witch of the West in all her glory? For thousands of years, parents have told children fairy tales that have scary themes, in part to instill the appropriate amount of wariness about real-world dangers.įor most kids, adjusting to a bit of scariness is a part of typical growth and development. Scary movies and books have long been a staple of childhood, a source of excitement and acceptable risk. Listening to and telling creepy stories, carving pumpkins, yelling “Boo!,” putting on a mask and costume, and pretending to be someone else for the night - usually a bigger and badder someone - are all part of the fun of Halloween.įor most kids, adjusting to a bit of scariness is a part of typical growth and development. For these kids, it’s usually about the spooky atmosphere that surrounds the holiday. Most kids relish the spine-tingling attributes of Halloween, maybe because deep down they know it’s not real.

And it’s not just about going out and getting lots of candy. Many kids count Halloween as their favorite day of the year.

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