Haunted House Tutorial

There have been way to many changes going on in our household than I would like to admit.  That being said - preschool time had been put on the back, back burner.  Now that there seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel and not a train coming right at us things will get back on the right track.  {Oh ... pardon the pun}

I am looking forward to all the fun Halloween stuff I have planned to do with them over the next couple of weeks.  I know I have lost some of you right there.  Yes, we are Christians and yes, we let our children partake in Halloween.  But, I digress.

You are here to see how we made our "Haunted House with Pockets" for all these fun little ghost games we are going to play.

First of all what are we going to be doing with this house?  Many, many matching games.  Matching games for numbers, letters, colors, shapes, rhymes, and phonics.  We might even give some math a shot - addition, subtraction and even place values.

To make the haunted house you will want to gather your supplies.

• Contact Paper
  (The ugly stuff hidden in a closet - now is the time to use it since you just need the huge sticker it provides.)
• Black Construction Paper (3 sheets of 12 x 18 is what I used)
• 1 Sheet Protector
• Permanent Marker
• Scissors
• Tape

1. Gather supplies (listed above)
2. Cut 2 sheets of contact paper the same size (roughly 18 by 24). Cover one sheet with 2 sheets of black construction paper.
3. Draw yourself a house on the ugly side.  Be sure to include the windows and doors.  See how I changed my mind in the middle of that house.  It is okay!  That's the back and will ultimately be covered with another piece of contact paper.
4. Cut carefully.  Cut the house out completely.  When cutting windows and doors you want them to stay attached so they will open can close during game time.
5. If you are only using the haunted house for one skill, lets say colors, cover the openings with colored paper - taping it in place.  Use the other sheet of contact paper to cover the back and trim.  Done!

But you are here for pockets!  Let's keep going!

1. With pretty side up (the black side) trace your haunted house on to the backing paper of the second piece of contact paper.  Trace all openings.  Set this aside again for now.
2. Cut the sheet protector to cover all the openings on the ugly side of the haunted house.  
3. Tape and secure in place. This is the front of the pocket.  
4. Back to the second sheet.  Cut slits above your traced openings about 1/2 an inch above the traced cut out.
   
   for some reason I missed pictures of the next steps and I want to apologize.
   
5. Carefully remove the backing paper from the contact paper and cover any area where an opening will be with construction paper. I choose to use black as to not distract when I am using the game later.
6. Line up the two pieces. This is frustrating and might make you want to say bad words in front of your kids if it folds up or doesn't line up right the first time. {Okay that is just me ... fiddlesticks}  If this happens I was able to carefully pull apart the pieces and realign.  
7. Smooth all over.  You may need to tape the areas by the doors to make sure they stay closed securely.

Game pieces will be made here over the next few days and I will share them when they make an appearance.  

Interested in what we are doing for preschool during Halloween?  

Take them for a test drive!