People often associate Halloween with massive amounts of candy, but Halloween can be fun even without a ton of sugar. Today I’m going to share 5 creative non-candy Halloween gift options to give to trick-or-treaters.
Plant Cuttings
If you have easy-to-grow houseplants or herbs, consider taking some cuttings of them to propagate and share. When kids arrive at your door, simply wrap the baby plant’s roots in a damp piece of scrap fabric or a moist paper towel, then give the plant and some instructions for its care to the child. Children get countless pieces of candy on Halloween, but getting something they can watch grow will be something they remember fondly.
Money
If you want to have an instantly appreciated gift, go to the bank and buy a few rolls of quarters. When trick-or-treaters ring the doorbell, put one or two quarters in their bucket. I promise, they’ll love it.
Polaroids
Polaroid or “Instant Cameras” are very popular with kids right now, and while I wouldn’t recommend you go out and buy one just for Halloween, I do think if you have one you could put it to good use with trick-or-treaters. If you feel comfortable, let the kids take a picture of something themselves: it could be a picture of a fun decoration on your porch, a selfie with their friends, or even a picture of you! Once they’ve taken the picture, hand them the photo to keep. They will feel like an artist and get quite a lot of joy from the simple experience.
Invisible Ink Messages
This gift will take a bit of work ahead of time, but it will be worth it. Sit down for a while and make secret messages. Keep everything lighthearted of course: goofy drawings, corny jokes, or even kind affirmations. Tell the kids how to reveal the secret messages, or have a station set up next to your door where they can reveal the messages right away. The kids will be delighted by the effort and the surprise of figuring out what their message was.
Potatoes
Last but not least, we have the humble potato. Years ago someone told me they would ask trick-or treaters if they would like a trick or a treat. Whenever kids answered trick, they would get a potato or other sort of root vegetable added to their bucket. I loved that the kids could pick for themselves if they wanted a trick gift or something more traditional, and with something as simple as a potato, it will almost definitely be eaten and appreciated later on.
I hope you liked the list. For more creative ideas of what to give trick-or-treaters, check out my previous Halloween posts: Eco-Friendly Trick or Treat Options and Low Waste Trick or Treat Gifts.
Bonus: All of these are safe options for kids with food allergies, making them good options to include in the Teal Pumpkin Project.