Kids have always been able to discern reality from make-believe. When I grew up my mother sheltered me from horror movies and the like, all it did was make me fear watching a horror/monster movie which is in essence just a story. As a result I feared going to the movies and made me fear my freinds would see how I feared going to a movie which would have led to a feeling of embarrassed amongst my friends. So instead of enjoying these movies with my peers, I had to go through most of my childhood feeling as if I were a baby. My oldest niece went through the same experience as she grew up and one evening when she was 12, she watched Nightmare on Elm street at my home, that was the evening she realized there was nothing to fear. To date she is 35, succesful, well adjusted, and still thanks me for letting her watch the movie that night and helping her over her fear of make believe. I have never sheltered any of my children from horror movies and have shown them that these movies are nothing more than a story and fake. I have five children and three have grown to be reponsible adults with the other two entering their teens and they are all far from being scarred by the experience. To date, they do not fear sleeping with the lights off or suffer from nightmares as a result of any movie, haunted house or scary/gorey costume they have encountered. Kids are stronger and more intelligent than society gives them credit to be.

and 2... kids see scary = candy