Celebrating Halloween with a Child with Special Needs Helpful tips to celebrate Halloween for parents of children with special needs
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espite the BOO!-filled nature of Halloween, your child with an anxiety disorder, sensory issues, or other special needs can find a way to partake in the holiday: Preparation is key! Introduce your child to the holiday with fun songs, books, or movies that have a Halloween theme, suggests Debora Thivierge, founder and CEO of ELIJA School and Foundation on Long Island. And refrain from trying new strategies to help your child cope with the sensations of the holiday, cautions Jana Diamond, M.S. Ed., board-certified behavior analyst. Your child can become overwhelmed with new stimuli and new approaches for coping, so use concepts that have worked for your child in the past.
PREPARE YOUR CHILD» Halloween means scary sights and
seeing people dressed up costumes, so it’s a good idea to prepare your child to see: • Spiderwebs, ghouls, shrieking goblins: As decorations begin popping up around town, use social stories that illustrate what children might see, Diamond says. • Superman, monsters, witches: Visit stores that have costumes on display, browse catalogs filled with Halloween characters, and play dress-up at home to help make children comfortable with the notion of seeing people in costume, Diamond says. Explain to your child that costumes are made up of clothing and props, nothing magical or scary. • Masks: These can be especially scary, as they transform even close family members into unrecognizable beings. “Find masks that your child is comfortable with and have her look in the mirror as she puts it in front of her face and yours,” Diamond says. Participating in an art project that entails making a mask can also help put kids at ease.
CHOOSE AN ACCESSIBLE COSTUME» Between
sensory overstimulation while trick-or-treating and costumes that just don’t work, Halloween can feel more trick than treat for kids 24 October 2021 • siparent.com
with special needs. However, by shopping one of these accessible costume lines, you can make Halloween a little easier on everyone. These costumes transform wheelchairs into fantastic props, allow access for feeding tubes and other equipment, and feature tag-free, comfortable materials. • Target’s Adaptive Costume Collection features costumes that are adaptable and accessible for all kids, plus it features wheelchair covers that transform wheelchairs into fire trucks, pirate ships, princess carriages, racecars, and more! • The Magic Wheelchair is a nonprofit that designs and creates Halloween costumes for kids in wheelchairs at no cost to families. • Spirit Halloween offers several accessible Halloween costumes for kids. While they’re more expensive than your typical Halloween garb, they ship for free. • Etsy is a haven for anyone looking to find unique, beautiful, and accessible costumes. • Rolling Buddies’ costumes, which can be found on Amazon, are sheets of durable but light plastic that can be placed over wheelchair wheels. Kids can have trains, planes, and pumpkin carriages, police cars, pirate ships, and more as the base of their costumes. Outfits not included. If your child is interested in dressing up for Halloween, have them wear the costume around the house prior to the holiday to grow accustomed to the look and feel of it. If sensory issues prevent this, steer clear of complicated ensembles and stick with a simple T-shirt with a theme, or a Halloween hat or other accessory. Face paint can be a wonderful tactile sensation for sensory seekers, but skip it as well as eye masks, helmets, and other similar accessories for young sensory avoiders.
MAP OUT A TRICK-OR-TREATING PLAN» Is your
child daunted by the prospect of going door-to-door asking for candy from strangers? • Role-play with family members to simulate trick-or-treating. “Have a child knock on a door in his house and prompt him on what to say and what appropriate behavior is expected,” Diamond advises.
