I like the vocabulary parade idea. A lot of kids wear a different costume to school than the one they use for trick-or-treating later on, so why not turn the second outfit into something a little smarter?

I haven't seen a lot of change in the content of the parties, but then again in my current position I'm not really immersed in any single school so I could easily miss something like that. I have seen big changes in costume regulations (e.g. no swords or guns, makeup strongly recommended instead of masks), in the name of safety. Hence my note above about having more than one costume.

Candy corn gets a bad rap, I think. It's not so bad unless you're going to use it to make candy cornbread, or if you're going to fry something in candy corn oil. And don't even get me started about using candy corn in succotash.

Volunteers from 15 different high schools (public, private, city and county) are picking up canned goods instead of candy tonight for Student Sharing Coalition's annual Halloween for Hunger event. Last year we raised 3.2 tons of food, and the potential for growth is huge. The canned goods go to various soup kitchens and shelters in great need. High school students can do something wonderful for others and still have time for the traditional Halloween festivities afterwards.