Most communities long ago set trick-or-treating to end between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m., effectively ending the all-night candy hunts.
By and large, the days when kids left the house dressed as witches, fairies, ghosts or goblins to gorge on treats at school are gone, too.
Over the years, some districts have abandoned the concept of the school Halloween party altogether, instead opting for non-costumed fall harvest parties because of religious, cultural, economic or other concerns.
“It’s economics. It’s a little bit of everything. We just don’t make it a really big deal,” Troy schools Superintendent Eric Herman said. “It is just being sensitive to the world we live in.”
But Herman said Troy children don’t miss out on the Halloween fun.
The whole thing makes me wonder if this is yet another example of the laming of Halloween. Some parents simply aren’t down with Halloween because of its pagan roots and general spookiness.
I grew up poor, and we used our imaginations to create costumes, but the fact is that some families can’t afford Halloween costumes.
Little hobos and mummies don't work in some districts.
And Herman is right. There are plenty of ways to celebrate Halloween outside of school.
Troy like most communities has Beggar’s Night, and several churches organize trunk or treat parties during which kids get candy from car trunks lined up in parking lots.
“They can go to the church, and there is a safe environment,” Herman said.
Ohio Education Association spokeswoman Michelle Prater said school policies on Halloween vary around the state. Sometimes it also varies from school to school in the same district for a variety of reasons.
At least half of Kettering’s eight elementary schools, for instance, plan to have Halloween parties and parades, according to Kari Basson, the district’s community relations coordinator.
Banning or restricting Halloween parties at school is not uncommon around the country.
School districts have canceled or banned Halloween parties for reasons ranging from concerns about costume safety to religious objections.
Many schools have shortened the time devoted to the spookiest day of the year and added restrictions for safety and practical reasons.
Northmont City Schools communications officer Jenny Wood said most of the district’s elementary schools still have Halloween parties, but they are not the all-out candy feast from my youth.
“At the parties that I’ve witnessed, I have seen lots of cheese, lots of veggies,” she said.
Wood said parties vary from classroom to classroom, but generally parent volunteers work with teachers to set them up.
Volunteers make cute treats and/or cupcakes or cookies.
Student allergies and dietary restrictions also are a big concern — as is unnecessary effort.
“They don’t want to be cleaning up a mess when it’s done,” Wood said.
Wrapped treats, if there are any, are generally sent home with the child.
For safety reasons, children cannot bring big props or anything that might look like a weapon. For practical reasons, some principals don’t allow masks or face paint — as they can be distracting.
Wood, the mother of Northmont alumni, said parties and parades are generally held the last hour of the school day so as not to interfere with education.
“We don’t want it (the party) to take up a large part of the school day,” she said. “You can’t expect teachers to put costumes on 30 kids.”
It all makes perfect sense, but I still think it is a little sad that today’s kids don’t experience full-on Halloween overload like I did as a kid.
Halloween is a time of imagination, and it was always so exciting to celebrate the whimsy (and candy) of it all with classmates.
What do you think? Is there a place for little ghosts and ghouls in Dayton-area schools?
Contact this blogger at arobinson@DaytonDailyNews.com or Twitter.com/DDNSmartMouth
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