1. Is Halloween an important day in your country? What does it mean to you?

2. How will you celebrate Halloween this year?

3. Did you go trick or treating as a child? Can you remember what you dressed up as?
4. Would you let your children go trick or treating without adult supervision? Why or why not?
5. What is your favourite kind of candy or treat? What kind of treat would you be disappointed
to receive?
6. If some kids come to your house on Halloween, and you don’t give them any candy, what do
you think they might do to you or your house?
7. Have you ever been to a Halloween party or some other kind of costume party? What did
you dress as? What happened at the party?
8. These days, people don’t just wear scary costumes. They wear costumes based on many
things including popular news stories and politicians. Is this against the traditional scary spirit
of Halloween?
9. Many Halloween costumes for adults seem sexy or overly revealing. Why are these kinds of
costumes popular?
10. What is your all-time favourite scary monster or creature of the night?
11. Do you like horror movies? Why or why not? If so, what’s your favourite scary movie?
12. Some people decorate their house to celebrate Halloween. Do you decorate your home to
celebrate any special days?
13. Have you ever carved a jack-o-lantern? How difficult or easy was it to carve?
14. Are you scared of the dark? If not, what advice can you give to people who feel scared when
the lights are out?
15. Celebrating Halloween has origins in remembering the dead and confronting the concept of
death with humour. How do you feel about death?
16. One tradition on Halloween is the telling of scary stories. Do you know any scary stories?
17. What are some of the symbols of Halloween?
18. Do you believe in magic?
19. Did you know there were real 'witch trials' in the seventeenth century?
20. Why do you think they happened?
21. Do you think there are really witches and monsters and creatures living amongst us in the
real world, or are those things just from our imagination?
22. If you could choose to be any monster or creature, what would it be?
23. What is your favourite magical story?
a. Character in a book?
b. Film?
c. Legend?
24. If you could use a magical spell, like a love spell, on somebody, would you?
Because the movie Halloween (1978) was on such a tight budget, they had to use the cheapest
mask they could find for the character Michael Meyers, which turned out to be a William
Shatner Star Trek mask. Shatner initially didn’t know the mask was in his likeness, but when he
found out years later, he said he was honored.

The first Jack O’Lanterns were actually made from turnips.

Halloween is the second highest grossing commercial holiday after Christmas.

The word “witch” comes from the Old English wicce, meaning “wise woman.” In fact, wiccan
were highly respected people at one time. According to popular belief, witches held one of
their two main meetings, or sabbats, on Halloween night.

It sometimes presents itself with related phobias, such as phasmophobia (the fear of ghosts),
wiccaphobia (the fear of witchcraft), and nyctophobia (the fear of darkness)
Samhainophobia is the fear of Halloween.

Fifty percent of kids prefer to receive chocolate candy for Halloween, compared with 24% who
prefer non-chocolate candy and 10% who preferred gum.

The owl is a popular Halloween image. In Medieval Europe, owls were thought to be witches,
and to hear an owl's call meant someone was about to die.

According to Irish legend, Jack O’Lanterns are named after a stingy man named Jack who,
because he tricked the devil several times, was forbidden entrance into both heaven and hell.
He was condemned to wander the Earth, waving his lantern to lead people away from their
paths.

The largest pumpkin ever measured was grown by Norm Craven, who broke the world record in
1993 with a 836 lb. pumpkin.

Stephen Clarke holds the record for the world’s fastest pumpkin carving time: 24.03 seconds,
smashing his previous record of 54.72 seconds. The rules of the competition state that the
pumpkin must weigh less than 24 pounds and be carved in a traditional way, which requires at
least eyes, nose, ears, and a mouth.
Trick-or-treating evolved from the ancient Celtic tradition of putting out treats and food to
placate spirits who roamed the streets at Samhain, a sacred festival that marked the end of the
Celtic calendar year.

“Souling” is a medieval Christian precursor to modern-day trick-or-treating. On Hallowmas

(November 1), the poor would go door-to-door offering prayers for the dead in exchange for
soul cakes.

The first known mention of trick-or-treating in print in North America occurred in 1927 in
Blackie, Alberta, Canada.

Cats have a prominent place in Halloween folklore and décor. With their link to the ancient
Celtic festival of Samhain (a precursor to Halloween) and later to witches, cats have a
permanent place in Halloween folklore. During the ancient celebration of Samhain, Druids were
said to throw cats into a fire, often in wicker cages, as part of divination proceedings.

“Halloween” is short for “Hallows’ Eve” or “Hallows’ Evening,” which was the evening before All
Hallows’ (sanctified or holy) Day or Hallowmas on November 1. In an effort to convert pagans,
the Christian church decided that Hallowmas or All Saints’ Day (November 1) and All Souls’ Day
(November 2) should assimilate sacred pagan holidays that fell on or around October 31.

Black and orange are typically associated with Halloween. Orange is a symbol of strength and
endurance and, along with brown and gold, stands for the harvest and autumn. Black is
typically a symbol of death and darkness and acts as a reminder that Halloween once was a
festival that marked the boundaries between life and death.

Ireland is typically believed to be the birthplace of Halloween.

Scarecrows, a popular Halloween fixture, symbolize the ancient agricultural roots of the
holiday.

Halloween has variously been called All Hallows’ Eve, Witches Night, Lambswool, Snap-Apple
Night, Samhain, and Summer’s End.

Halloween was influenced by the ancient Roman festival Pomona, which celebrated the harvest
goddess of the same name. Many Halloween customs and games that feature apples (such as
bobbing for apples) and nuts date from this time. In fact, in the past, Halloween has been called
San-Apple Night and Nutcrack Night.
Because Protestant England did not believe in Catholic saints, the rituals traditionally associated
with Hallowmas (or Halloween) became associated with Guy Fawkes Night. England declared
November 5th Guy Fawkes Night to commemorate the capture and execution of Guy Fawkes,
who co-conspired to blow up the Parliament in 1605 in order to restore a Catholic king.

Harry Houdini (1874-1926) was one of the most famous and mysterious magicians who ever
lived. Strangely enough, he died in 1926 on Halloween night as a result of appendicitis brought
on by three stomach punches.

Looking in a mirror at midnight on Halloween was thought to reveal a boyfriend's face

Scottish girls believed they could see images of their future husband if they hung wet sheets in
front of the fire on Halloween. Other girls believed they would see their boyfriend’s faces if
they looked into mirrors while walking downstairs at midnight on Halloween.

According to tradition, if a person wears his or her clothes inside out and then walks backwards
on Halloween, he or she will see a witch at midnight.

Mexico celebrates the Days of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) on the Christian holidays All
Saints’ Day (November 1) and All Souls’ Day (November 2) instead of Halloween. The
townspeople dress up like ghouls and parade down the street.

During the pre-Halloween celebration of Samhain, bonfires were lit to ensure the sun would
return after the long, hard winter. Often Druid priests would throw the bones of cattle into the
flames and, hence, “bone fire” became “bonfire.”

The famous magician Harry Houdini died on October 31, 1926.

Dressing up as ghouls and other spooks originated from the ancient Celtic tradition of
townspeople disguising themselves as demons and spirits. The Celts believed that disguising
themselves this way would allow them to escape the notice of the real spirits wandering the
streets during Samhain.

The National Retail Federation expects consumers in 2010 to spend $66.28 per person—which
would be a total of approximately $5.8 billion—on Halloween costumes, cards, and candy.
That’s up from $56.31 in 2009 and brings spending back to 2008 levels.

About half of children prefer to receive chocolate on Halloween

In 1970, a five-year-old boy Kevin Toston allegedly ate Halloween candy laced with heroin.
Investigators later discovered the heroin belonged to the boy’s uncle and was not intended for
a Halloween candy.

In 1974, eight-year-old Timothy O’Bryan died of cyanide poisoning after eating Halloween
candy. Investigators later learned that his father had taken out a $20,000 life insurance policy
on each of his children and that he had poisoned his own son and also attempted to poison his
daughter.

According to the National Retail Federation, 40.1% of those surveyed plans to wear a
Halloween costume in 2010. In 2009, it was 33.4%. Thirty-three percent will throw or attend a
party.

In 2010, 72.2% of those surveyed by the National Retail Federation will hand out candy, 46.3%
will carve a pumpkin, 20.8% will visit a haunted house, and 11.5% will dress up their pets.

Halloween is thought to have originated around 4000 B.C., which means Halloween has been
around for over 6,000 years.

The longest haunted house in the world is "Factory of Terror" in Canton, Ohio.

Teng Chieh or the Lantern Festival is one Halloween festival in China. Lanterns shaped like
dragons and other animals are hung around houses and streets to help guide the spirits back to
their earthly homes. To honour their deceased loved ones, family members leave food and
water by the portraits of their ancestors.

A child born on Halloween is said to have the ability to talk to spirits.

Halloween celebrations in Hong Kong are known as Yue Lan or the “Festival of the Hungry
Ghosts” during which fires are lit and food and gifts are offered to placate potentially angry
ghosts who might be looking for revenge.

In many countries, such as France and Australia, Halloween is seen as an unwanted and overly
commercial American influence.

Chances of children being in a pedestrian/car accident more than double on Halloween

Children are more than twice as likely to be killed in a pedestrian/car accident on Halloween
than on any other night.
Both Salem, Massachusetts, and Anoka, Minnesota, are the self-proclaimed Halloween capitals
of the world.

Boston, Massachusetts, holds the record for the most Jack O’Lanterns lit at once (30,128).[9]
Pumpkins are classified as a fruit, not as a vegetable. In fact, in 2006, New Hampshire declared
that its state fruit is the pumpkin.

In a few American cities, Halloween was originally called "Cabbage Night." The name is on a
Scottish fortune-telling game in which girls would use cabbage stumps to predict who their
future husband would be.

The original name of Count Dracula in Bram Stoker's famous book was Count Wampyr.[11]
Comedian John Evans once quipped: “What do you get if you divide the circumference of a jack-
o’-lantern by its diameter? Pumpkin π.”

The Village Halloween parade in New York City is the largest Halloween parade in the United
States. The parade includes 50,000 participants and draws over 2 million spectators.

The blockbuster movie Halloween was filmed in just 21 days. The movie Halloween was
originally titled Babysitter Murders.

The sounds of stabbing in the Halloween movie is made by a knife being plunged into a
watermelon.

In an attempt to decrease robberies and crime on Halloween, Walnut Creek, California banned
masks without a permit.

In Bellville, Missouri, it is illegal to ask for candy if you are over the age of 13.

In Dublin, Georgia, it is illegal for anyone over the age of 16 to wear a mask, sunglasses, or any
other facial covering on Halloween.

In Alabama, it is illegal to dress up as a priest or as a nun on Halloween.

The average bag of candy that one child will collect on Halloween contains about 11,000
calories. The original creator of Milk Duds wanted to make the candies into perfect circles.
When that proved impossible, he called them "duds." He added the word "milk" to refer to the
large amount of milk used to make the candy.