Haunted House Hunt and “At the Old Haunted House Haunted House” Book Review

by Haley Bono

October is a time for fun and imagination. If you are looking for some spooky fun with your kids, then "At the Old Haunted House" is the book for you. Written by Helen Ketteman, and illustrated by Nate Wragg, this book takes the reader on an eerie, but fun look inside one of the silliest haunted houses you’ll ever read about.

As you go from room to room, you’ll count the monsters, ghosts, and even a few black cats along the way. You’ll meet a “mommy mummy”, a “papa vampire”, and a whole lot more. This haunted story is full of surprises, and ends in a halloween feast and party. We checked this book out at our local library and my 2-year-old was so enthralled, he continued to ask me to read it again and again. Definitely a Halloween favorite.

If you are interested in buying this amazing book, please check your local bookstore . If you are having trouble finding it, you can click here. to purchase this book from Amazon.

Trace your own haunted house, and then use a paper flashlight to see what’s inside. This is a pretty cool optical illusion you can do at home with just a few supplies.

Supplies:

Free tracing Template (free link at the end of this post), permanent markers (you can use just black, but more colors adds some pop to the activity), scissors, black paper (or other dark colored paper), plastic sheet protector (you can also use a large clear Ziploc bag).

Directions:

1. Cut out the haunted house shape from the tracing template, and trace it on your plastic sheet protector (or your Ziploc bag). Younger kids may need help with this step.
2. Next cut out the shapes inside the haunted house, and trace those shapes inside the haunted house you just traced onto the plastic sheet protector. Younger kids may need help with this step.
3. Color and add any additional details.
4. Cut out the flashlight.
5. Slip the black paper into the plastic sheet protector/Ziploc back. Depending on the size, the black paper may need to be trimmed.
6. Now you can slip the flashlight between the plastic and the black paper, this will give the illusion that you are shining a light in the haunted house to see what is inside.

Different Variations:

• With older kids, skip cutting out the items in the haunted house and just let them draw their own. You can encourage them to draw only things that they would find in a haunted house, things that you read from the book, or let them just have fun drawing whatever they would like.
• Tell a story as you use your flashlight to look inside the haunted house. Maybe you see a ghost. What is that ghost doing? Narrate the story as you do the activity, or encourage your children to narrate a story.