Attention data nerds. This is a call for assistance. 🍬 My son Wes, 9, now runs
By Lynnyoder · November 2, 2026 · Curated by George's Blog
Attention data nerds. This is a call for assistance. 🍬
My son Wes, 9, now runs a Halloween candy research lab. And we’re recruiting researchers.
The fieldwork is done. Now it’s time for desk work.
Last year, Wes and five friends sorted and counted their Halloween candy to answer one question: Which candy really shows up the most? (It was Twix.)
This year, we’ve opened the experiment to trick-or-treaters everywhere.
Kids download a tally sheet, count their candy, and snap a photo. AI reads the results and shows how their haul compares with everyone else’s. They earn a researcher card with badges, and the entire dataset is open for exploration.
Early findings: 5 researchers. 281 pieces. 61% chocolate.
But we have bigger questions: Does where you trick-or-treat make a difference? Are bigger candy hauls actually better? And will Twix defend its title?
We need more data to find out.
My favorite part is how many real research habits this teaches: forming a hypothesis, comparing fairly, knowing when you don’t have enough evidence, and correcting mistakes in public.
Case in point: Last year’s flyer claimed 972 pieces. The actual count was 203. Whoops.
Our goal: 1,000 pieces counted by Friday, November 6. If your kids went trick-or-treating, we’d love their data. We’ll share the findings afterward.
🔬 Link in comments.
#Halloween #DataLiteracy #STEM