"Halloween is a spooky and scary holiday, but it shouldn't be for parents," said Sylvia Barsotti editorial director of The Family Channel at Scholastic.com and parent of three. "Because Scholastic is a trusted resource, we wanted to provide parents with easy-to-use information to ensure a safe holiday filled with lots of treats, and less tricks."

Following are highlights from the Scholastic Halloween Guide - for more tips and information, log on to http://www.scholastic.com/halloween:

SAFETY TIPS:

Parents gearing up for a night of trick-or-treating or the ghost and goblin parade with their children can use these suggestions to help keep Halloween scares to a minimum.

• Attach Reflective Tape to Kid's Costumes -- Reflective tape makes a child much easier to spot in the dark. A few strips on the child's back, front and goodie bag should do the trick.
• Make Sure Children Under 12 Are Supervised -- If parents are unable to accompany their child, another adult or teen chaperone should supervise trick-or-treating.
• Let Adults Do the Carving -- Kids can draw a pumpkin pattern with a marker, but leave the carving to adults.
• Check Children's Candy -- Never eat anything that isn't sealed. Check candy wrappers for pinholes, tears or unusually loose packages that can indicate possible tampering.

Setting rules for candy consumption are almost as important to parents as the rules they set for trick-or-treating safety. Here are some tips that help parents set limits without being a ghoul:

• Plan Healthy Meals for Halloween -- Candy isn't a substitute for essential nutrients. Planning well-balanced meals on Halloween will ensure that sweets do not replace essential nutrients -- plus, sending kids out on a full stomach may discourage them from tearing into candy as they collect it.
• Find Treats That Do the Trick -- Adults can find treats to give out besides candy. Crayons, stickers and apples are some examples of great goodies that kids will love.
• Participate in Acts of Sweetness -- Halloween is a great time for parents to teach kids about sharing. This is a day when kids are inspired to be like Spider-Man or other heroic do-gooders. Encourage charitable attitudes by turning trick-or-treating into a charitable exercise. In addition to candy, children can ask for donations for a non-profit organization or school programs.

Whether families are planning to transform their homes into haunted mansions or are simply putting a pumpkin on the porch, the sure-fire way to set the party mood is with games and activities that will have kids howling for more. Some great examples are:

• Design a Scarecrow -- Split kids into groups of three to six members and give each team a bag full of at least a dozen objects and pieces of clothing. One person on each team is the "Scarecrow" who her teammates dress up using all the objects in the bag. Award a variety of prizes (fastest, funniest, scariest, etc) so that everyone wins!
• Pumpkin Bowling -- This is a great outdoor game. Fill six two-liter bottles with about three inches of water and arrange in a pyramid. Using a miniature pumpkin or gourd, kids take turns rolling the pumpkin at the "pins."
• Scary Story Circle -- Fill a pumpkin with several slips of paper that contain a single Halloween-themed word. Gather kids in a circle on the floor, and each child asked to pull a word out of the pumpkin. After the kids know their words, dim the lights and start the story with "It was a dark and stormy night ... " Take turns around the circle and let each child to add a few sentences using their word.
• Traditional Games -- Halloween Style -- Classic games such as Hot Potato (Pass the Pumpkin), Pin the Tail on the Donkey (Stem on the Pumpkin) and Musical Chairs (to the "Monster Mash") are always a great choice.

Scholastic.com is the leading website for K-8 teachers, students and families. For educators, "The Teacher Store" at Scholastic.com is a unique online shopping experience that features an extensive, relevant selection of classroom and professional development materials at preferred teacher-pricing. "The Teacher Resource Center" offers free, standards-based content that spans reading, language arts, math, social studies, and science. It includes thousands of teacher-tested lesson plans; engaging student online activities; tools for the creation of free, personalized classroom homepages; and online ordering for Book Clubs and Software Clubs. For parents and families, "The Scholastic Store Online" offers a broad mix of merchandise carefully selected for its developmental appropriateness and kid appeal, with learning benefits endorsed by a panel of early childhood experts. A robust Family area on the site facilitates home-to-school connections through sections entitled "What's Up At School" and "Smart Parenting." Kids will be delighted to find games and activities featuring their favorite Scholastic characters on Scholastic.com, including Clifford the Big Red Dog(TM), Harry Potter(TM) and Captain Underpants(TM).

About Scholastic

Scholastic Corporation (Nasdaq: SCHL) is the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books. Scholastic creates quality educational and entertaining materials and products for use in school and at home, including children's books, textbooks, magazines, technology-based products, teacher materials, television programming, videos and toys. The Company distributes its products and services through a variety of channels, including proprietary school-based book clubs, school-based book fairs, school-based and direct-to-home continuity programs; retail stores, schools, libraries, and television networks; and the Company's Internet Site, http://www.scholastic.com.