The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has finally come out with their guidelines for celebrating Halloween this Fall. The guidelines are quite the fright for kids hoping to trick or treat door to door this Halloween! The CDC warns that many of the traditional activities celebrating Halloween are high risk activities and thus have given us examples of what activities are in what category of risk. Included in the high risk category are the following activities:
High Risk:
- Traditional Trick or Treating- door to door with the handing out of candy
- Trunk or Treat where candy is handed out from trunks of cars
- Attending crowded indoor Halloween costume parties
- Indoor haunted houses with small proximity to others where screaming is present
- Hayrides or tractor rides with seating next to strangers
- Traveling to another community to partake in activities if you come from a community with a COVID spike
- Alcohol or drug use that can impair judgment and increase risky behavior
Moderate Risk:
- Open air costume parade where 6 feet social distancing is maintained
- One way Trick or Treating with pre-pared Halloween goodie bags at the end of the driveway or porch
- Outdoor costume party where a social distance of 6 feet is maintained
- No costume masks- they are not a substitute for cloth face coverings
- Open air one way walkthrough haunted forest
- When visiting orchards or pumpkin patches use hand sanitizer when touching pumpkins or fruits
- Outdoor Halloween movie night with close family & friends - maintain 6 feet social distance
Low Risk:
- Carving or decorating pumpkins at home with family
- Carving or decorating with friends or neighbors outside at a safe distance
- Decorate your home with festive decor
- Have a virtual Halloween costume contest
- Halloween scavenger hunt outdoors where children are given lists of Halloween-themed things to look for while they walk outdoors from house to house admiring Halloween decorations at a distance
- Halloween movie night with people you live with
- Scavenger hunt-style trick-or-treat search with your household members in or around your home
What do you make of these CDC guidelines? For me, I do feel bad for kids and parents because they are the ones who are normally going door to door, engaging in costume contests at school, and attending Halloween community events. I personally am not that affected by this as I'm childless and I don't do door to door Trick or Treating as an adult and quite frankly I never get Trick or Treaters in my rural neighborhood so my "new normal" will ultimately look the same as my usual "normal" at Halloween. However, there is one thing I will miss out on, and that is an annual adult Halloween party my friends have that I usually attend but I've honestly missed it the last 2 years so I will get by. I think the CDC honestly put out some smart ideas and ways that kids and families can still celebrate Halloween during an unprecedented time in history. They did not say shut everything down, there will be no celebrating, and if you even think about gathering even outside, we'll shut you down! They are trying to make it work for you while still being safe so I can't fault them for that despite it being frightful news to traditionalists of Halloween. At least you can still dress up and do "one way" Trick or Treating as an option amongst your family and friends in your neighborhood so I think some parents can make it work with the options provided. Your thoughts?
For more from the CDC's website on tips and guidelines, visit HERE.
-Producer Lightning