What have your kids decided to be for Halloween this year? I had some choose to be ninjas, a shark, and a giant chicken. Maybe yours chose to be a princess, or a farmer, or a dinosaur, or maybe a princess-dinosaur-farmer, why choose? 

That's part of the magic of dressing up.

For one magical day, kids get to step into another world and imagine themselves as someone, or something, completely different. I bet you still remember what you chose to be for Halloween, or at least for one of them;). 

Hidden inside all that make-believe is an opportunity for a surprisingly meaningful conversation:

Who do you want to become in real life?

Not what do you want to be when you grow up.

But what kind of person do you want to become?

Halloween gives us a fun way to begin that conversation.

Start With the Costume

Instead of only asking, “What do you want to be for Halloween?” try following it with:

“What do you like about them?”

The answer might surprise you.

• Maybe your child wants to be a firefighter because firefighters are brave.
• Maybe she loves princesses because they're kind.
• Maybe he wants to be a farmer because Grandpa is a farmer.
• Maybe your dinosaur-loving child simply thinks being strong and enormous would be awesome.

Whatever the answer, you can now ask: 

• “What do you think makes someone really brave?”
• “How can we practice being kind?”
• “What makes someone a good helper?”
• “What kind of person do you want to be?”

Suddenly, you're talking about character, and your child probably doesn't even realize you're having a “lesson.”

Pretending Helps Kids Explore Who They Could Be

Children spend a lot of time pretending.

They care for stuffed animals. Drive imaginary trucks. Build farms. Rescue dinosaurs. Put on crowns and declare themselves royalty.

And that's not wasted time.

Make-believe gives children a safe place to explore ideas about the world and their place in it.

So instead of separating imaginative play from conversations about character, we can bring the two together.

When your child pretends to be something, ask what kind of person that character could be.

• A princess can be honest.
• A farmer can be hardworking.
• A truck driver or construction worker can be helpful and dependable.
• Someone caring for an animal can be gentle and responsible.

And even the fiercest dinosaur can lead to a conversation about using our strength in good ways.

The costume or character gets their attention.

The conversation helps them think about who they are becoming.

Try a “Character Costume” Challenge

Here's a simple activity to try this Halloween.

After your child puts on their costume, ask them to choose one character trait they want to “wear” along with it.

Maybe it's:

• Honesty
• Kindness
• Courage
• Patience
• Responsibility
• Generosity

Then challenge them to find one way to practice it before the costume comes off.

Get our Free Who Do you Want to Become? Activity workbook

Keep the Imagination Going After Halloween

When the costumes are packed away, that kind of imaginative learning doesn't have to end.

Books, coloring, toys, and pretend play can continue giving kids opportunities to explore different worlds, and different qualities they want to develop.

That's part of the fun behind Kanga Toys' Aqua Brush Books.

Kids get the simple magic of brushing a page with water and watching the pictures appear, while the different themes give families opportunities to talk, imagine, and learn together.

For the Child Who Loves the Farm 🚜

For kids fascinated by barns, tractors, animals, and growing things, the Farm Aqua Brush Book gives them a world they already love exploring.

Use that interest to talk about qualities like hard work, patience, helping, and taking care of things that depend on us.

Read then ask, “If you had your own farm, what would you be responsible for?”

For the Child Who Dreams of Being a Princess 👑

Our Princess Aqua Brush Book taps into all the fun of crowns, gowns, and make-believe while introducing an important quality: kindness and friendship.

Afterward, keep the story going. Ask your child, “What makes someone a good princess?”

Then see how many qualities you can think of that have nothing to do with a crown.

For the Animal Lover 🐾

This book is in the works, and we can’t wait for it to be available soon! 

Some kids seem to notice every dog, cat, bird, and bunny within a five-mile radius.

Our Caring for Pets Aqua Brush Book can help turn that natural love for animals into conversations about gentleness, responsibility, patience, and caring for others.

Ask your child, “If this pet were yours, what would it need from you?”.

It's a simple question that introduces a much bigger idea: when someone, or something, depends on us, we have a responsibility to care for them.

For the Child Who Stops Everything to Watch Construction 👑

This book is in the works, and we can’t wait for it to be available soon! 

You know the kid. The garbage truck comes down the street and everything stops.

We created the Trucks Aqua Brush Book to tap into that fascination with big vehicles and important jobs all working together towards a goal.

As you explore it together, talk about how many people have to cooperate to build, move, fix, and create things.

Try asking, “What kind of job would you want your truck to do?” then, “How could that job help someone?”

Now you're connecting something they love with ideas about teamwork, dependability, and service.

For the Dinosaur Expert 🦖

Some kids don't just like dinosaurs. They can tell you the name, diet, habitat, and probably the geological period of every dinosaur you've never heard of.

Let them run with it!

The Dinosaurs Aqua Brush Book gives dinosaur lovers another way to explore that fascination.

Then turn it into imagination, “If you were as strong as a dinosaur, what would you use your strength to do?”

We can use our strength to protect, help, build, stand up for others, and do hard things.

We Become Through the Choices We Make

This Halloween, ask your child what they want to be.

Admire the costume. Play along. Let them roar like a dinosaur or twirl around the living room like royalty.

Then, sometime between the costume parade and the candy sorting, ask one more question:

“What kind of person do you want to become?”

You might be surprised by the answer.

Check out all of our Aqua Brush Books!