The end of October is almost here; meaning teenagers are making their Halloween plans, whether that be trick or treating, a party, or just hanging out at home. Since Halloween lands on a Thursday this year, many teens are waiting to celebrate Halloween on the weekend when they do not have school the next day.

Halloween is a century old tradition that began as an ancient Celtic Festival to ward off ghosts but is now one of the most popular holidays in the world, centered on dressing up as the very monsters that our ancestors were trying to obviate. Now, a majority of the world participates in Halloween through a tradition from the 1920s—trick or treating. Children dress up as their favorite characters, animals, monsters, or anything they can imagine, and go door-to-door asking for candy. However, once those same kids reach high school, what do they do on Halloween instead?

High school is the place where many changes are made in a teenager’s life. The four years they spend in high school transition them into young adults through the things they learn and take away from academic and social situations. Overall, high school is when kids really grow up. What comes with growing up is the transition out of trick or treating. No one sees grown adults going door to door asking for candy on Halloween. After all, Senior Michael Shipley says, “I stopped trick or treating around seventh grade. All my friends were starting to stop and we just felt too old to be dressing up among a bunch of little kids.” Other IHS students have shown the same trend of students stopping trick or treating around seventh grade. Senior Parker Seng agrees saying, “I stopped in seventh grade, it just wasn’t something I got excited about doing anymore.” Most teens stop trick or treating for the basic fact that trick or treating as a teenager is looked down upon and shamed in a way. However, if teenagers are not going to trick or treat, there are other things to do. Shipley and Seng both explain that they will be hanging out with friends for Halloween and maybe hand out candy to the kids that come knocking on their door for treats.

Despite the many teenagers not deciding to trick or treat this year, there are ones doing exactly the opposite. Junior Jonah Frederick says, “I am 100% trick or treating this year. I do every year and I am not planning to stop.” Frederick elaborates further saying, “Teens shouldn’t be looked down upon if they still want to trick or treat. If you have the Halloween spirit, what’s wrong with spreading it?” AP U.S. History teacher Kathryn Kelly expands saying if teenagers are dressed up and in spirit asking for candy on her doorstep, then she sees no problem with that. Nonetheless, Kelly also says, “If a teenager shows up on my doorstep on Halloween to trick or treat and they have no effort at a costume, that’s not cool. The whole point of Halloween is the costume and the spirit.” One thing one can take away from this is that the whole point of Halloween is the spirit and when they lose part of the Halloween spirit they had as a kid, they stop trick or treating. Junior Ashley Hickey explains saying, “I stopped trick or treating in 7th grade, not because I don’t like Halloween anymore, actually the opposite. I still dress up but I feel like I have grown out of trick or treating. Now I go to parties and hang out with friends.” Sophomore Maria Bolgar also says, “I’m planning on going to a party this year and dressing up, I’m not trick or treating just because I feel kinda old for that”

The transition of kids to teenagers leads them to less candy obtaining and more attending parties and hanging out with their friends. Nevertheless, adults also go through a change with their Halloween plans as well. Kelly expands on how when her daughter was younger, she would trick or treat with her but now that she’s grown out of the trick-or-treating age, Kelly opts to hand out candy to the kids that come to her door. On the celebration of Halloween she says as an adult, “People seem to be very into it or not at all…. I have friends, grown ups, who every single year go to a Halloween party…but for me I feel like that’s something I never really got into.” One can see how as teens make their transition out of trick or treating. Many of their parents and other adults make a transition as well.

From‌ ‌parties,‌ ‌to‌ ‌handing‌ ‌out‌ ‌candy,‌ ‌to‌ ‌hanging‌ ‌out‌ ‌with‌ ‌friends,‌ ‌there‌ ‌are‌ ‌many ways

teenagers are celebrating Halloween. Halloween is tomorrow and it will be exciting to see what most teenagers decide to do this year!