Halloween Costumes For Your Child With Down Syndrome
Choosing the best Halloween costume for your child with Down Syndrome can be hard as the wrong choice can really make or break a night of trick-or-treating.
Hey Mama Bears, full disclosure here. There are affiliate links in this post so if you click on the link and buy the product I will earn a small commission. Now that we’re clear on that let’s get back to rocking life with special needs!
Max has a dual diagnosis of Down Syndrome and autism so there are a lot of factors we have to consider when choosing a costume for Halloween since he does have sensory issues in addition to sight and mobility challenges.
Halloween is tough for Max.
He loves some parts of it but REALLY struggles with other parts.
He does not do well if there’s too much chaos (ie kids running in the streets on a sugar high), he can become nervous around strangers (ie walking up to a stranger’s door and asking them for candy) and as it becomes dark he can’t see as well and uneven surfaces trip him up (ie uneven sidewalks and tree roots).
He does enjoy dressing up, trick-or-treating with his siblings, and he certainly loves chocolate so we’ve never completely skipped out on Halloween fun.
We’ve discovered ways to make Halloween work for us. If you’re interested you can check out The Best Halloween Tips For Your Child With Down Syndrome where I share things we’ve learned along the way.
Choosing a Halloween costume wisely is one of the key ingredients to a fun Halloween experience for your child with Down Syndrome. If you don’t, it can spoil the Halloween fun.
Remember Mama Bears, as with anything on Twenty One Dandelions, you know your child and your family best. Take what works for you and don’t worry about the rest!
Questions To Ask When Choosing A Halloween Costume For Your Child With Down Syndrome
When choosing a Halloween costume for your child with Down Syndrome ask yourself the following questions…
Will my child be comfortable in the costume?
Will my child be able to move easily in the costume?
Is the costume easy to get on and off?
Will my child be able to tolerate a mask?
Will my child wear a hat?
Is the costume itchy or scratchy or have tags that will be bothersome?
Will my child be too hot or too cold?
Are there accessories I am going to end up holding the entire night and if yes, am I ok with that?
What kind of costume would my child love? Is there anything they’re really into?
Asking yourself these questions will help you narrow down the possibilities so you can choose something that won’t cause a Halloween nightmare.
Halloween Costume Tips For Your Child With Down Syndrome
Halloween Costume Tip #1 For Your Child With Down Syndrome: Pajamas Are An Acceptable Halloween Costume
Halloween themed pajamas are a perfectly acceptable Halloween costume.
Find a pair of skeleton pajamas and BOOM you’re done. If your child isn’t down with being a skeleton I’ve seen mummy pajamas and jack-o-lanterns.
Halloween Costume Tip #2 For Your Child With Down Syndrome: Onesies Are Also An Acceptable Halloween Costume
Where were these adorably themed onesies when I was a kid?
Seriously there are so many choices! Does your child want to be a unicorn? Giraffe? Pikachu? Monkey? Dalmation?
Max was a frog years ago!
Halloween Costume Tip #3 For Your Child With Down Syndrome: Themed Everyday Clothes
If your child is more comfortable in regular clothes then come up with a costume where they can wear regular clothes.
Think cowboy or cowgirl in jeans and flannel shirt or farmer in a T-shirt and overalls.
Your child can wear a baseball jersey with sweatpants, a soccer jersey with shorts, or a basketball jersey with shorts. Instant baseball player, soccer player, and basketball player.
Max wore a suit one year with a boutonniere and was a groom. He teamed up with a friend who was the bride, however if you don’t want to do that, make a “Mayor” button and they can be the Mayor of the town.
Max is a Buffalo Bills fan so another year he wore a Buffalo Bills hat and polo shirt with a head set, and had a whistle around his neck. He was the Buffalo Bills head football coach for one night!
Halloween Costume Tip #4 For Your Child With Down Syndrome: Accessories
Accessories can make a costume. Khaki pants, brown shirt, add a safari hat and you’re a safari guide or explorer.
Jeans, T-shirt, add a fishing vest and hat…fisherman.
For the past two years Max has donned a red cape over his clothes, put a crown on his head, and he’s a king. Black dress, add a witch hat and you have a witch. You can add cute tights if you want and a broom.
Buy scrubs, add a stethoscope and there’s a doctor in the house.
I’ve donned a Hogwarts robe, grabbed a wand and been a Hogwarts student sorted into the Gryffindor house for many years.
There are so many possibilities!
Halloween Costume Tip #5 For Your Child With Down Syndrome: Keep It Simple
Whenever possible…keep it simple.
Halloween costumes do not need to be elaborate.
Black pants, black shirt, add a set of cat ears, draw cat whiskers on the face and you have a cute cat. Gray sweatpants and sweatshirt, add some mouse ears and whiskers and you have a mouse.
Halloween Costume Tip #6 For Your Child With Down Syndrome: Add Layers
Sometimes your child falls in love with one of the Halloween costumes you find in the store. It’s itchy and you know it’s going to be an issue. This happened to us with a Woody from Toy Story costume.
Max was a big Toy Story fan for many years and he had to be Woody. He was so excited to try on the costume. As soon as we took it out of the packaging and he put it on I knew it would be a problem.
We live in an area of the United States where it can be quite cold on October 31st so having Max wear a sweatshirt and sweatpants underneath protected him from the scratchiness and he was able to wear his dream costume.
Halloween Costume Tip #7 For Your Child With Down Syndrome: Wear The Costume And Ditch The Mask
One year Max fell in love with the Captain America costume… the one piece that you pull on with the built in muscles.
We knew if it was scratchy we could just have him wear a bulkier layer of clothing underneath but the mask was a no go.
And you know what?
It was ok that he didn’t want to wear the mask.
If your child loves a costume but doesn’t love the mask that goes with it…that’s ok.
Nobody cares that much. When we were out trick-or-treating nobody commented on the fact that Max wasn’t wearing the full Captain America costume.
Halloween Costume Tip #8 For Your Child With Down Syndrome: Let Your Child Choose
Don’t force your child to wear a costume they don’t want to wear. The misery for you and them just isn’t worth it.
Let me give you a pro parenting tip. After asking yourself the questions I gave you earlier, come up with three Halloween costume ideas for your child that you are on board with and then let your child pick from those three ideas.
Halloween Costume Tip #9 For Your Child With Down Syndrome: Let Your Child Wear The Costume Before Halloween
I’m not saying let your child wear it all day every day leading up to Halloween. My kids are hard on their clothes and that includes their Halloween costumes.
I am saying let them bumble around the house in the costume for an hour or two before Halloween to make sure there are no major issues with it and to help them get comfortable in it.
Halloween Costume Tip # 10 For Your Child With Down Syndrome: Consider An Adaptive Costume
There are lots of adaptive Halloween costume options now which is super nice. An adaptive costume may be the right way to go if your child is in a wheelchair or has a feeding tube.
Adaptive costumes have open backed costumes for easy dressing, flaps and openings for tube access, and they tend to be made from softer material.
So there you have it Mama Bears!
Halloween costume tips and ideas for your child with Down Syndrome!
If you enjoyed this post then you may want to check out…
The Best Halloween Tips For Your Child With Down Syndrome
20 Fun Activities To Do With Your Child With Down Syndrome To Get Into The Holiday Spirit
10 Tips For Leaving Your Child With Down Syndrome With A Caregiver
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I hope this post helps you rock this special life.
