Halloween is a holiday that most American children celebrate. From dressing up and going trick-or-treating to feeling their way through a dark haunted house to drinking hot cider and taking a hay ride at a pumpkin patch, it seems there is something for all kids to enjoy on Halloween. But, there is a time in a kid’s life that the lure of going door to door to collect candy seems to wane – that’s during high school.

A random group of 65 Nazareth students were surveyed about their feelings and habits during the Halloween season. While 100% of those surveyed said that they have gone trick-or-treating at some point in their lives, just over half said they’ve done so at any point during high school.

Even if they’re not dressing up and trick-or-treating, it’s safe to say that most teens still do enjoy Halloween candy. The overwhelming favorites this season are chocolate-based treats. 23% of Nazareth students said Reese’s was their favorite candy with KitKat coming in second and Twix in third.

Compared to a report on candy sales leading up to Halloween last year published by Instacart, Naz tastes fall in line with the rest of the country’s. “Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups took the #1 spot, measured by total weight sold in October 2024,” reports Instacart. More chocolatey sweets round out the top spots. According to Instagram’s data, “Peanut M&M’s and classic M&M’s weren’t far behind, followed by Kit Kat and Snickers.” 

When high schoolers are not trick-or-treating, they are celebrating in other ways. 75% of students surveyed said that just last year, instead of trick-or-treating, they went to a party, hung out with friends or went to a haunted house or pumpkin patch. Only 6% of students said they didn’t celebrate Halloween in any way at all. 

Sophomore John Bukovac feels the change in real time. While he did go door to door last year, he said that he feels too old to do it again this year. In retrospect, he said he wasn’t that excited to go trick-or-treating as a freshman, and attributed that to feeling differently towards Halloween.

According to IllinoisPolicy.org, there is no statewide age limit for Illinois trick-or-treaters unless you live in the southwestern town of Belleview, where only those who are 12-and under are legally allowed to trick-or-treat.

The shift from trick-or-treating to other activities is not limited to today’s high school students. English teacher Jennifer Boyle said she stopped trick-or-treating in 7th grade. “It was more fun to be out with our friends, it was not so much about the candy,” she said. Boyle’s favorite thing about Halloween these days is handing out candy to children in her neighborhood.

There are still high school students who aren’t shying away from trick-or-treating this year. Sophomore Emily Lyons said, “People my age think that it’s for kids, but I think it’s for everybody. You don’t have to be a certain age to do it.” Lyons is with the 59 percent of students surveyed that said they go trick-or-treating at some point during their time in high school.