Halloween is right around the corner and it’s always an exciting night for the kids. I’ve found a couple tech tips to make Halloween more fun and a little less worrisome for everyone.
Track with Google
As kids get older, they want some freedom when they trick-or-treat. Tech can help you keep a close eye on them as they fill their bags in the neighborhood. My favorite free app for keeping tabs on family members with smartphones is the Google Maps app. Most of us already have it installed on our phones, so that takes care of step number one. After that, look for the “Location Sharing” feature on your kids’ phones to share their locations with your phone. You can set this up permanently or for a limited amount of time. Once it’s set up, open Google Maps on your phone and find your kids on the map. It’ll update their locations throughout the evening, so you always know where they are. This works with both iPhone and Android smartphones. Make sure they remember to keep those smartphones with them throughout the night.
Trick or Treat with Nextdoor
Tech can also help make candy collection and neighborhood navigation more efficient. There’s nothing worse than hiking over to a certain street, only to realize that nobody has their lights on. Nextdoor has a tool that allows homeowners to mark their homes with a candy corn icon in the app so trick-or-treaters know who’s handing out treats and who has the porch light turned off. It’s a fun way to check the layout of your neighborhood and see which streets might offer a better collection of treats than others. You can find it on the Nextdoor app or at nextdoor.com/treat.
With these tips in mind, don’t let tech get in the way of a good Halloween. Have fun, be safe, and enjoy the people around you. Hopefully these apps will give you a little peace of mind and help fill the kids’ bags with sweet treats.
