Ghost or goblin? Fireman or fairy princess?

On Monday, October 31, family and friends will gather in neighbourhoods across Canada as toddlers and teenagers set out for their trick-or-treating.

Many will be eager to fill their goody-bags with candy, but it is important to remember how to stay safe when crossing busy streets and approaching a neighbour’s house. Our friends at Safe Kids Canada are here to help with a list of tips and tricks on how parents can keep Halloween safe and fun.

• Children under the age of nine should be accompanied by an adult or responsible older child, since they lack the developmental skills to cross the street on their own.
• Teach your child to stop at the curb, look left, right and left again and to listen for oncoming traffic.
• Select costumes with bright colours to increase your child’s visibility and choose face paint instead of masks.
• Always cross at crosswalks, street corners or intersections - it’s unsafe to cross between parked cars or other obstacles.
• Stay on the sidewalk when walking from house to house and if there is no sidewalk, walk beside the road, facing traffic so drivers can see you.

For more on Halloween safety, visit www.safekidscanada.ca.

Happy Halloween!

Halloween is a fun and magical time where children can exercise their creativity and imagination. A chance for children to live out their dreams and for one day be somebody else - a superhero, a monster, a princess, a cowboy or even their favourite doctor or nurse.

For children at the hospital who are dealing with an illness, this can be even more important. Each year, The Child Life department at SickKids hosts a Halloween Celebration Parade for patients and their siblings. The parade path consists of Halloween booths/stations throughout the hospital where kids enjoy “trick-or-treating” for toys, crafts, key chains, stickers and more. It is one of the highlights of the year, where kids, parents, staff and donors get involved to put a little “ghoulish fun” into spending Halloween at SickKids.

It is this type of care and compassion that makes SickKids such a special place and brings smiles to the faces of sick children during an otherwise difficult time.

Special thanks to Wal-Mart Canada, TD Bank, Disney Canada, Blockbuster Canada, Foresters, SpinMaster and Children’s Miracle Network for their generosity and supporting the Halloween Celebration Parade at SickKids.

For all the little ghosts and goblins who will be trick-or-treating this weekend, have a fangtastic Halloween and don’t forget to review these safety tips from Safe Kids Canada.

http://www.safekidscanada.ca/