Trick or Teal

About 8 percent of kids in the United States have a food allergy, and there is no cure. On Halloween, that means a bag full of candy can be a bag full of things they cannot eat, and one wrong peanut can mean a trip to the hospital instead of a sugar rush. To help make Halloween more fun for everyone, more and more houses are putting a teal pumpkin on the porch. It tells every kid walking by that this house has something besides candy, like glow sticks, stickers, or small toys.

Candy is not cheap anymore either. Americans are expected to spend a record $13.5 billion on Halloween in 2026, and a box of 48 full-size chocolate bars that cost about $40 two years ago now costs about $50. A bowl without any food in it can cost less than a bowl of chocolate, if somebody plans it well.

Your Task: Imagine you are in charge of your house's Halloween this year, and you just put a teal pumpkin on the porch.

1. Not Candy
Think of something you got as a kid that was not candy and was actually exciting, from Halloween, a party bag, or a prize box. If nothing comes to mind, name the thing you wish someone had handed you. Say what made it worth more than a fun-size bar. (2 to 3 sentences.)

2. The $40 Bowl
You have $40 and about 60 trick-or-treaters, and nothing in the bowl can be food. Say what goes in, roughly what each kid gets and what it costs per kid, and why a kid who can eat all the candy they want would still be glad they stopped. (4 to 5 sentences, with your math.)

3. Not the Lame House
Kids talk on the walk between houses. Describe the one thing your house does so the bowl with no candy becomes the stop everyone tells their friends about. (2 to 3 sentences.)