Free printable Halloween activity

Haunted House Integer Maze

A self-checking 20-problem Halloween integer maze with signed-number and order-of-operations challenges, plus a full answer key.

Grades 6–820 problemsAbout 50 minutesAnswers included
Download the free activity PDF

Why this activity works

Instead of tracing an arbitrary path, students earn every move by solving with signed numbers. The final phrase acts as a built-in accuracy check, while the room groupings progress from addition and subtraction to multiplication, division, and multi-step expressions.

Teaching note

Do not reveal the message early. If the decoded phrase is unclear, students can locate errors by checking only the positions that do not form a sensible word.

Materials

  • Pencil
  • Scratch paper

How to use it

Solve each room and choose the matching door. Record the letter beside the correct value. The 20 letters reveal a Halloween safety message.

Complete activity preview

All prompts below are included in the printable version. Keep the answer key closed until the activity is complete.

Hallway: Add and subtract

Use direction and distance on the number line.

  1. 1-7 + 12. Doors: T = 5, B = -5, M = 19.
  2. 24 - 13. Doors: A = 9, R = -9, S = -17.
  3. 3-15 - (-6). Doors: I = -9, N = -21, L = 9.
  4. 4Evaluate −18+7−(−5)\displaystyle -18+7-(-5). Doors: C = −6\displaystyle -6, P = −16\displaystyle -16, V = −30\displaystyle -30.

Library: Multiply and divide

Apply sign rules to products and quotients.

  1. 5(-8)(-3). Doors: K = 24, D = -24, P = 11.
  2. 654 / (-6). Doors: H = 9, O = -9, W = -48.
  3. 7(-4)(7)(-2). Doors: R = 56, E = -56, U = 18.
  4. 8Evaluate −96÷(−8)÷3\displaystyle -96\div(-8)\div3. Doors: T = 4\displaystyle 4, G = −4\displaystyle -4, S = 36\displaystyle 36.

Staircase: Mixed operations

Use grouping and the order of operations.

  1. 9-3 + 5(-2). Doors: R = -13, F = 4, G = -7.
  2. 1018 / (-3) + 10. Doors: E = 4, V = -16, J = 7.
  3. 116 - 2(5 - 9). Doors: A = 14, C = -2, B = 8.
  4. 12Evaluate −4[3−2(−5)]+7\displaystyle -4[3-2(-5)]+7. Doors: T = −45\displaystyle -45, E = −21\displaystyle -21, B = 59\displaystyle 59.

Attic: Absolute value and exponents

Distinguish magnitude, signs, and powers.

  1. 13|-12| - 7. Doors: S = 5, Q = -5, X = 19.
  2. 14-23\displaystyle 2^{3} + 3. Doors: T = -5, I = 11, O = -11.
  3. 15|-4 - 9| / 13. Doors: A = 1, P = -1, D = 17.
  4. 16Evaluate ∣−32+4∣\displaystyle |-3^{2}+4|. Doors: Y = 5\displaystyle 5, N = 13\displaystyle 13, R = −5\displaystyle -5.

Tower: Final rooms

Combine all integer skills and decode the message.

  1. 17(-5)^2 - 17. Doors: S = 8, Y = -42, H = -8.
  2. 183[-4 + 2(-3)]. Doors: A = -30, Q = -6, E = 30.
  3. 19-24 / [2 + (-6)]. Doors: F = 6, W = -6, Z = 4.
  4. 20Evaluate 24−3∣−6∣\displaystyle 2^{4}-3|-6|. Doors: E = −2\displaystyle -2, L = 34\displaystyle 34, H = 2\displaystyle 2.
Open the complete solutions

Open-ended and experimental responses may differ when the reasoning meets the stated conditions.

Hallway: Add and subtract

1. 5; record T

2. -9; record R

3. -9; record I

4. −6\displaystyle -6; record C

Library: Multiply and divide

5. 24; record K

6. -9; record O

7. 56; record R

8. 4\displaystyle 4; record T

Staircase: Mixed operations

9. -13; record R

10. 4; record E

11. 14; record A

12. −45\displaystyle -45; record T

Attic: Absolute value and exponents

13. 5; record S

14. -5; record T

15. 1; record A

16. 5\displaystyle 5; record Y

Tower: Final rooms

17. 8; record S

18. -30; record A

19. 6; record F

20. −2\displaystyle -2; record E

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