Trick or treating is a fun time for every type of children but there may be a few problems parents could encounter with a child who has special needs. The holiday can trigger behavior that could make handling these kids a bit more difficult.

A child with Asperger’s or similar condition will have to have no pressure with preparing for Halloween. Parents shouldn’t make this such a full blown affair, just so the child can experience everything. Keep it stress-free by keeping it simple. Let the child pick his own costume or relent if he wants to be the one to hand out the candies, instead of going out and asking for candies.

When it comes to eating the treats, let your child know way ahead of time what must be done to the candies, or how many he can eat at a time. Set expectations with regards this so that there will no struggling and debate later on.

Don’t exhaust the child. They can be fussy and really difficult to handle when they are tired. As with candy eating, a schedule must also be set ahead of time. If you have to go trick or treating for an hour, then that must be followed properly. If possible, go trick or treating way before dinner time.

The most important thing to consider is to listen to your child and observe his behavior so that you can anticipate and avoid any more problems.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has released a study suggesting that TV time and computer time for children under two years old must be limited.

According to the research, these kids’ have developing brains and human interaction is crucial, instead of watching it on television or the computer. There are several educational shows that do help kids learn, but for those so much younger, too much TV viewing can be detrimental to their habits, as they can develop and worsen. Speech delays, poor sleeping habits and dependency on TV watching are just some of its effects.

According to the AAP, here are what parents and their caregivers must do:

• Set media limits for their children before age 2, bearing in mind that the AAP discourages media use for this age group. Have a strategy for managing electronic media if they choose to engage their children with it;
• Instead of screens, opt for supervised independent play for infants and young children during times that a parent cannot sit down and actively engage in play with the child. For example, have the child play with nesting cups on the floor nearby while a parent prepares dinner;
• Avoid placing a television set in the child’s bedroom; and
• Recognize that their own media use can have a negative effect on children.

Parent-child interaction is crucial at this stage as they learn best from it, not from the screens.

This also includes other media devices that should be set with limitations, like portable handhelds, gaming devices and readers.

Does your child have her weekly or montly allowance? How do you give this to her? Is this a set amount for the week, or do you make her strive and work for it?

It’s become an issue to a parent I know, whose child has been asking a 100% increase in his allowance because it did not seem to cover his day to day expenses at school. I mean, what day to day expenses? The kids only come to school to study, and perhaps eat lunch and snacks, which should cost a little under $5 at best. Lunches are even free and the child can bring his or her own food for snacking.

It turns out, what this parent’s kid really wanted was to save money for purchasing a really expensive toy. And while the idea of saving is a good one, some parents suggested that instead of giving the kid his money outright, the parent can also teach him to earn it.

So, after agreeing to the set up, father and son have made up a chart about chores he can do around the house in a week. Each chore is equivalent to a price and everything is at least below $5 to do.

I like the idea better because the children can learn responsibility. They can also appreciate the value of hard work and money by doing this.

How do you manage allowances or giving money to your child, with them learning the value of what they are asking for?

For young kids, hitting is a way of expressing emotions. When they don’t get what they want, it’s a natural reaction for them to hit their playmate. Toddlers usually respond physically when they feel frustrated. And this can be minimized if parents are able to handle this properly.

When you see your child doing this, gently hold their hands and tell them to stop with the hitting. Don’t attempt to explain in long and winded words why this is wrong. They are likely not to listen when they are in this state. A simple “no” or “don’t” would do.

Remove your child from the situation and help him calm down. Once he is relaxed you can put him back with his p playmates, carefully watching over him. When you see that he is starting to get frustrated again, assist him with the right words to use to help him manage this. If he’s angry at another playmate for not sharing with him, teach him to say, “May I borrow please?” instead of just grabbing the item.

Never berate your child in public or hit them back yourself. There is a reason why they are expressing themselves in this manner, and you, as their parent, have to get to the bottom of this. Getting angry at their behavior only compounds their reason to hit kids more. Help them cope and eventually they will learn to stop using their hands to vent, but instead manage their anger properly.

Field trips are something kids look forward to because they get to get out of school and visit certain places with the rest of the people in their class. It’s a fun time to learn a few things. And for really small children, this trip is always a memorable one.

I remember the first time I took a field trip as a kid going into kindergarten and I can still picture the images in may head. I don’t remember having a parent with me in these trips but it’s not the case for kids today.

When I had my own children going on their trips, I always accompany them. I was there when they went to the park, to the museum, to a factory and even a trip to a city fair. It was sort of a learning experience for me as well, as I’ve never been to some of these places, which is why I have to admit that I also look forward to this.

However, there came a point when I though — when am I going to stop going on field trips with the children? At some point, the child would have to be embarrassed being with their parents on the bus with them, right?

I stopped going with my kids on field trips by the time they are 8-9 years old. But I still see many parents joining until the child is about 10 or 11. There are some schools that never allow parents at all.

At what point did you stop accompanying your kids on trips?