Over the past few years, a new figure has appeared on Halloween, joining ghosts and goblins in capturing children’s imagination. When kids return home from trick or treating with their haul of goodies, they separate their bounty into two piles—one to keep and one to trade. The trade pile is left out for the switch witch, who comes while they sleep and replaces it with a toy, book, or other desired plaything.
You can tailor the switch witch tradition any way you wish to align with your beliefs, values, and goals. Some families name their switch witch (like the Elf on the Shelf), and other parents exchange candy for experiences like going to the park or a movie. You can also adjust how much candy you give the switch witch.
While some parents allow their kids to keep five pieces, others leave it up to their children to decide how much of their candy to leave for the switch witch. Frightful Ingredients Titanium dioxide Tertiary butylhydroquinone (TBHQ) Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) Synthetic dyes like Red No. 3 One complaint is that the switch witch robs children of the joy of a holiday where they have traditionally been allowed to indulge in all the candy they want—unrestricted.
Although this is likely not the case for everyone, Halloween is seen by many as a rite of passage—a time to dress up, run around with your friends, and, perhaps most importantly, eat candy until you can’t. The thought is that, instead of forcing kids to give away their hard-earned sweets, Hall.
