Become a Ghost Tour Beta Tester

Here's an interesting opportunity for some of you Haunt Jaunters out there: a start-up company specializing in ghost tourism is looking for ghost tour beta testers.

This opportunity came to my attention because of a comment left on one of my postings about paranormal tourism. My interest was piqued and my curiosity prompted me to contact the poster.

Which I'm glad I did because she made me aware of a new company she's launching. I'm sure it'll be profiled more later, but for now I can write about how she needs beta testers to test her product.

WHAT YOU'LL BE BETA TESTING

It's a self-guided tour package which will be going up for sale in southeast Wisconsin. From what I gather, it's a collection of Haunt Jaunts you follow at your leisure. (See why I was intrigued?)

WHERE YOU'LL BE BETA TESTING

The southeast Wisconsin area.

WHEN BETA TESTERS ARE NEEDED

Between July 26 and August 8.

WHO TO CONTACT TO BECOME A BETA TESTER

Susan Scot Fry of the Caper Company susanscotfry@yahoo.com.

TALK ABOUT YOUR BETA TESTING EXPERIENCE

If you do this, I hope you'll leave a comment and let me know how it went.

Or, better yet, if you'd like to guest blog about your experience, I'd love to have you do that too. Just drop me an email at admin@hauntjaunts.net or leave a comment here so I can get in touch with you about it.

Improving Ghost Hunting Investigation Techniques

Autumnforest left some wonderful comments on yesterday's post that of course got me thinking about other ways to improve ghost hunting investigation techniques.

JOB ASSIGNMENTS

Autumnforest brought up the very astute point that just as people are assigned certain duties within a ghost hunting group (such as lead investigator, case manager or tech manager), investigators should be assigned certain tasks when out in the field.

It seems so obvious, but I know of very few groups where one person is in charge of taking EMF readings all night, another in charge of monitoring temperature fluctuations, yet another is responsible for EVP work.

But other scientific studies do this, break out the work and have people dedicated to specific tasks. Very good observation on her part. Leads to less contamination of evidence.

BETTER WAYS TO VERIFY EVIDENCE

Another thing she brought up was the EVP she'd captured of a kid. It was of bootsteps I believe, yet the kids at school didn't believe her. Even now many grownups would be hard pressed to.

Even though I've never heard the evidence myself, I'm 99% certain she didn't fake it. I think Autumnforest was ahead of her time even back then. She might not ever be able to convince the doubters but I think there's a crucial clue to legitimizing EVPs from her experience.

I believe I read before that she caught the EVP by sitting on the top of the stairs of the home she was growing up in at the time. This memory was triggered by something else Autumnforest said in her comment on yesterday's post. About how even GH, as much as they strive to be credible, still potentially contaminate a lot of evidence by moving around too much. They operative word is sit.

Now many times I have seen GH and GHI members sit while conducting EVP sessions. But I've also seen them start them while walking or while standing. I think a way to produce better, less contaminated results would be to (a) conduct them while sitting and staying as still as possible, and (b) conduct them in front of a video camera.

That means if a two-partner team is in the room during the EVP session, both people are accounted for on screen. That way no one can say it was the person behind the camera murmuring something and "creating" the EVP.

This can be accomplished a couple of ways:

1. Either both investigators wield cameras and keep them trained on each other the while time, or
2. If they're sharing a camera, placing it somewhere and then positioning themselves in front of it together.

Also, I hate to say it, but if it truly is an EVP, it should show up on both the voice recorder and the video camera. However, I also agree if the ghost only approaches the voice recorder and speaks softly into it and the video camera isn't close enough, I could see how the camera might not get it.

Still, I think evidence is the most legit when you have more than one source capturing it and too often it seems opportunities to do this (or try and do it) are missed.

A MATTER OF CONTROL

Another thing Autumnforest's comment made me think about is something from my college days: every experiment always has to have a control group. I have yet to see or read about any ghost hunting group using control methods to help verify results.

What made me think this was Autumnforest has a theory (well, a bunch of them really, that's why she blogs about them at Ghost Hunting Theories), that people can influence an investigation as much as the weather, time of day, or the moon's phase. It's an interesting theory, and I'm hoping she'll find a way to test it if she hasn't already, but it made me think of something else from my college science course experiment days. People themselves can corrupt data.

How to correct for corrupted data? Why, you set up a control group of course!

But how do you set up a controlled environment when ghost hunting? I'm sure there are other ways, but here's two I came up with:

1. The knowledge and background investigators have about each location should be minimized as much as possible. The case manager and the lead investigator(s) should know the hot spots and reports of activity, but the rest of the team members shouldn't. The lead investigator should assign the other investigators to certain areas but shouldn't tell them what to look for. Why? Because if you think about it, there's already a kind of corruption factor to begin with. It's called the expectancy factor. Investigators who know about a location will have preconceived notions of what they expect to experience and thus up the chances of doing so through self-fulfilling prophecy.
2. Investigators should not discuss experiences as they're happening. I've seen Jason and Grant do this from time to time on GH, but there's definitely room for improvement. Say a team of investigators hears something, like a voice. It's okay to say, "Did you hear that?" but instead of saying, "I thought I heard X" both should write it down on separate pieces of paper and then compare results during evidence review. (Or, in GH's case, for entertainment value the investigators could hold up their papers for the camera.) And to up the credibility factor, both investigators should be visible on camera, their backs to each other (or somehow make it obvious they can't see what the other's writing), and then hold up the paper. This would help validate experiences when investigators hear knocking, bangs, voices, etc. And in the case of voices the gender, whether they heard them laughing, screaming, moaning, or saying a word should be noted. (Example: I remember an episode Jason and Grant were investigating a tunnel, I think at the Stanley Hotel. Even the cameraman's camera picked up the voice of a little girl. It would really make such an experience even more credible if Jason and Grant wrote down separately what they thought they heard. In this case if they'd both written little girl laughing there'd be no denying it.)

The Othersiders: Too Young To Hunt Ghosts?

While I was watching Cartoon Network's "The Othersiders" investigation of the Queen Mary, I found myself thinking, "Perhaps these kids aren't too young to hunt ghosts after all."

With that said, I guess it's a good time to admit that I shared the sentiments fellow blogger AutumnForest expressed in one of her posts about "The Othersiders." Kids hunting ghosts? (Or as she put it, "drape climbers," which just cracked me up.) Come on, be serious. Someone's really trying to make a mockery of ghost hunting now.

However, the Queen Mary investigation made me stop and go "Hmmm...."

RELATE-ABILITY FACTOR

Personally, I think "The Othersiders" is kind of boring as ghost hunting shows go. (Although, maybe if I was a kid I'd think it was great.)

I also have a hard time believing the five were friends before the show and weren't "casted" for it. However, I have to admit a ghost hunting team comprised of teens might allow for different results than a team of just adults.

For instance, any children ghosts might be more inclined to make contact with someone nearer their own age. Likewise, older spirits may find younger ghost hunters more approachable and less threatening than an adult.

But on the converse of that, people who didn't much care for kids in life might be irritated by the presence of younger ghost hunters. (Talk about a new method of provocation!) Older ghosts (or, rather, people who were older when they passed) might relate more to someone their own age.

DID SHE SING BECAUSE THEY DID?

That's what I wondered when the Othersiders played the EVP of the little girl singing in the pool area. Perhaps they caught that EVP based on something they did during the investigation.

They tried to cajole the girl ghost said to haunt the pool area into singing, as its reported she does, by singing themselves. They picked "Ring around the Rosy." A simple song, a common enough one, but it impressed me nonetheless. Why?

I don't have kids and it's been a while since I was one. When they made the decision to sing period my first thought was, "What on earth song would I have sung if that was me investigating?"

When they went with "Ring around the Rosy" it was both obvious and genius. Of course I knew it. What person didn't sing it at some point in their own youth? But it never would have occurred to me to pick that one.

Now if they truly came up with it on their own or had some help from a producer, who knows. And who knows if they would have caught the EVP anyway without singing, but it was a pretty good EVP...perhaps because of what they did.

GHOST HUNTING TEAMS: THE ADVANTAGE OF DIVERSITY

It was because of the song they picked that I reconsidered my stance on teenage ghost hunters. Instead I thought, "What an advantage it is for those teams that are as diverse as possible."

Think about it. If you have good coverage of the age spectrum (youngsters on up to senior citizens), as well as a mix of males and females plus people from a variety of walks of life, you cover the gamut. The age/gender/ethnicity/etc might be as much of a factor or influence of the type of results your investigations turn up as anything else.

Yahoo! Groups Provide Haunt Jaunts Galore

Today I finally had some time to skim the posts on the Yahoo! Groups I belong to and ended up stumbling across Haunt Jaunts galore! (I didn't have much time to lurk around these groups before, but I do now that I'm done with radiation. After what I came across today, I'm stoked because what a great additional resource for me to find new Haunt Jaunt activities!)

All except one I found via the Haunted Times Yahoo! Group. (The other was via The Paranormal Research Society group.) I listed them by event date.

1. LIZZIE BORDEN BED & BREAKFAST WEEKEND RETREAT: JUNE 26-27, 2009

I know this doesn't give you much heads up since this event starts tomorrow. I don't even know if there's space still available. But I thought I'd list it anyway.

It's a Haunted Times event. On Friday June 26, Christopher Moon will give his Ghost Hunting 101 Seminar, followed by dinner which includes telling of the haunted history of of the B&B plus a tour. Then the night concludes with an investigation. On Saturday June 27, Moon goes more in-depth with his Ghost Hunting 102 class, and then dinner plus more investigations follow. (And, yes, Moon will be using his Telephone to the Dead during the investigations.)

Cost: $150 plus tax per person per night (includes class, dinner, investigation, room and breakfast) OR $50 per person per night for investigations only.

Call the Lizzie Borden B&B at 508-675-7333 to register.

2. AUDUBON COTTAGES - DAUPHINE ORLEANS WEEKEND RETREAT: JULY 24-25, 2009

Another Haunted Times event. Same kind of thing as described above, just the location and costs are a bit different.

Cost: $99 plus tax per person per night (includes class, dinner, and investigation...room is extra but discounted rates are available) OR $50 per person per night for investigations only.

Call Haunted Times Magazine at 877-880-6232 to register for the event.

To book a room at the event site, Call Dawn Ledet of the Dauphine Orleans at 504-586-1800.

NOTE: HT says space is limited for this one so if you're interested book sooner rather than later.

3. VILLISCA AXE MURDER HOUSE - SPIRIT COMMUNICATION 101: AUGUST 7, 2009

Another HT event. This time the focus of the class is on communicating with the dead, followed by a dinner and an investigation. Moon and his HT staff will leave at midnight, but the house will be open for further investigations until 2 a.m.

Cost: $99 per person (class, investigation and dinner only, you have to make your own room reservations)

Call Haunted Times Magazine at 720-344-6150 to make reservations for this event.

4. MASON HOUSE INN BED AND BREAKFAST: AUGUST 8-9, 2009

Yep, another HT event consisting of Ghost Hunting 101 and 102 classes.

Cost: $75 per person per event (Rooms are extra, but if you stay both nights you get $5 off your room the second night.)

Call 1-800-592-3133 to register.

5. FORT MIFFLIN PARA EVENT: SEPTEMBER 5, 2009

This is not an HT event. Rather, it's put on by Paranormal Association of Research & Assistance (PARA) in association with PARA-X Radio (who will be broadcasting live during the event).

Looks like they have some neat things lined up: presentations at each of the buildings, an EVP lab where you can listen to EVPs captured there, a photography lab teaching spirit photography techniques, and even an auction where one of the prizes will be a private investigation with investigators Shannon and Jeff Sylvia (who will also be there).

Cost: $75

Contact Lorraine Irby at 215.685.4167 to pre-register or visit PARA's website for more info.

ABOUT THE YAHOO! GROUPS IN THIS POST

If you're not a member of them but are interested in checking them out and maybe joining yourself, I posted their links below:

TheParanormalResearchSociety

Haunted_Times_Magazine_Public_group

Is There a Law for Becoming a Ghost?

Thanks to the Haunted Formula AutumnForest is working on over at Ghost Hunting Theories and Lisa Logan's Where Would YOU Haunt guest blog, I can't stop wondering: is there a law to becoming a ghost?


You know, like the Law of Gravity, the Law of Attraction...is there a Law of Lingering? (For lack of something else to call it.)


PHYSICAL CONSIDERATIONS


In a previous post I wrote about how AutumnForest is using six criteria to determine whether some places may be more predisposed to hauntings than others. Basically, she's trying to figure out if certain conditions must exist before a person's spirit could remain behind somewhere.


I've thought this is a very interesting way to examine haunted places, but now it really has me wondering some things. Especially after Lisa's post yesterday.


ASSUMING GHOSTS EXISTS

Maybe you can pick where you'd like to haunt. Maybe you don't have to die there necessarily. But can you only haunt places where the conditions will allow you to? (This is assuming you need certain conditions, such as proximity to water, sand/granite/limestone/or other such "conductors" that seem to appear in many environments where ghosts "live"...basically the criteria AutumnForest proposes in her Haunted Formula.)

So now I'm starting to think about how it is ghosts come to be differently than I was before. All of this has raised a whole new batch of questions, such as:

1. If there's something to the Haunted Formula, can ghosts still haunt places that don't have conditions conducive to letting them "live" there? (For instance, if someone dies in a place without the necesaary elements, can a ghost still manifest, or do they "feed" off certain elements to live?)
2. Why is it some people's spirits remain behind at all? I guess this is the question most ghost enthusiasts want the answer to, but now I'm thinking about it in a different way than I used to. I used to think you either died suddenly, or tragically, or with unfinished business, or just so much love for a place you wanted to stay there forever. But now I'm wondering if maybe there's physical properties about places that make it easier for people's spirits to remain behind...if they want to stay behind. But what if they don't want to stay behind? Which brings me to the next question...
3. Are ghosts made by choice or by circumstance? Meaning, when we die, do we have the option to become a ghost if we so choose? Or is it the place, specifically elements about the place, that sort of "trap" them and don't let people's spirits leave? (Maybe there's something about places with residual hauntings in particular that act as "recorders" instead of traps, but with intelligent hauntings...that's what I really wonder about. Are the spirits there by choice or because they can't leave?
4. And what if it's not about the physical elements of a place? What if ghosts don't want to go to the Beyond (for lack of knowing what's really After this life) so they stay Here. Or, what if the Universe is the greatest recycler of all and some ghosts exist because there wasn't a new body for them to go into at the moment of their death?
5. How would the major religions of our world reconcile their beliefs if somehow one day we are able to prove there are ghosts, we find a way to communicate with them, and we understand how it is they come to be and what it takes for them to exist?

I don't know if there's a law to becoming a ghost or not, but maybe one day with all these different people investigating the paranormal we might find out. (Who knows, the next Einstein or Newton might be out there right now as we speak on the verge of making the next great discovery!)

Haunts Jaunts Extends a Friendship Blog Award to These 8 Blogs

Yesterday I saw an email from my good pal, Lisa Logan (who I introduced here last week who'll be making a guest post), saying she'd given me a friendship blog award or some such on her blog, Writing in My Wildest Dreams.

"Huh?" I thought, confused.

See, I'd had a rather exhausting weekend. I haven't seen my dad since March 2008, when I made an emergency trip back to Denver when my mom went into the hospital. That trip was the beginning of what turned into what I'll probably come to call my Catastrophe Year.

(I ended up moving my mom back to Nashville with me because not only was she diagnosed with lung cancer while she was in the hospital, but she also had dementia and doctors determined she could no longer live alone. That was just the beginning of it all. I keep hoping with my hitchhiker being in remission that the dark days of my Catastrophe Year are behind me, but....)

That brings me back to my dad. Wayne and I went up to Indiana to see him because he flew in from Denver for a high school reunion and to stay with his sister. We drove up to see him because now his health is failing. His girlfriend is exhausted trying to keep up with all his doctor appointments and hospital stays, so... I once again feel the pressure to help like I felt when my mom took a turn for the worst. Except his situation is different from my mom's in a lot of respects. Different complications and considerations and my mind hasn't been still for the past four days trying to figure out what to do about it all.

So to see this award from Lisa was just that little bit of a happy booster that I needed. To remind me that there is a lighter and happier side to life. One I want to participate in too. With that said, here's how I'm participating today: By extending some "Let's Be Friends Awards" myself!

ABOUT THE AWARD:

Blogs that receive the Let’s Be Friends Award are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers.

I'd hereby like to deliver this award to the following exceedingly charming, friendly bloggers:

1. Lisa Logan of Writing in My Wildest Dreams (back atcha babe!): I think that not only is Lisa one of the most talented, creative, and on the verge of breaking it BIG writers I know, I LOVE her theme days, especially that Wild Dream Wednesday!
2. Chris Verstraete of the Candid Canine: I was honored she let me read her Searching for a Starry Night and fall in love with her Sam character long before it found a publisher...and then to be there biting my nails with her as she awaited responses to submissions, rejoiced with her during her acceptance, lived vicariously through her as it found publication, and celebrated with her when it became a 2009 EPPIE Finalist. To top it off, she's developed a great blog that lets others celebrate her journey too.
3. AutumnForest of Ghost Hunting Theories: I had been interested in her blog, but didn't know who she was until I clicked through to her profile after she consistently left comments on mine. Then I was even more honored she was commenting because here I've been such an admirer of the hard work she puts in over at her blog. (Not to mention all the interesting theories she proposes, some of which I'm convinced might either revolutionize ghost hunting techniques or change the way ghost hunters view their data.)
4. Mike and Julie at Above the Norm: I found them via Ghost Hunting Theories and immediately respected them. They're my kind of people! All things paranormal intrigue them, so they include just about everything in their blog: TV and movie reviews, book excerpts (that they're writing), thoughts in general...it's very interesting and entertaining stuff!
5. Tom G of Dark Destinations: I stumbled across this blog thanks to a link in a Google Alert. I immediately respected it and became a follower because it's a variation of the same thing Haunt Jaunts is. (Its tagline: The online travel guide to the mysterious and macabre...)
6. ATrueOriginall of The Paranormal Casebook: This blog is way rocking. I admire ATrueOriginall because she relentlessly posts clip after clip of daily paranormal news. How she does it, I don't know, but she's made herself an authority and a respected one at that among a ton of bloggers who share an interest in the paranormal and unexplained.
7. Phantoms & Monsters: I don't know who's behind this blog, but I like the stories they post. Often it's reprises of stories published elsewhere with links to the original piece. I also dig, dig, dig their header graphic. Creepy...
8. Nick Redfern's There's Something in These Woods: This blog mainly focuses on another side of the paranormal: cryptozoology. From Bigfoot to werewolves to vampires and other creatures that we know as myths or from legends, Nick sets out to find evidence of their existence. I like following to see what new creatures I'll learn about. (Some are just legend, their existence hasn't been proven, but they're beasts I've never heard of. I always like expanding my horizons!)

Ghost Conferences for the Rest of 2009

A while back I wrote about HauntedCon, but this week I got to thinking about other ghost conferences coming up for the rest of 2009. Where were they and when? (I knew I'd seen some others during my travels around various websites, so...)

I decided to do a little investigating and put together a list of what I came across. This is what I dug up.

Whether you're a ghost hunter or ghost enthusiast like myself, maybe one of these conferences will be near you. Could make for a fun (not to mention informative, educational, and possibly entertaining) little haunt jaunt!

1. June 19-20: 2009 Haunted America "Lucky 13" Conference. Where: The "haunted" Lincoln Theater in Decatur, Illinois. Cost: $60 (for both days.) Click here for more details. (Something I thought was neat was that one of the sponsors is Ghostology with Brian and Anna Marie, a show I mentioned in a blog not too far back. I have a feeling they might be the next breakout paranormal hit with their new show due out this fall. Of course, if they're not, you'll have this blog to quote me on...)
2. August 6-7: Paracon 2009, the First Annual Canadian-American Conference. Where: Sarnia, Canada. Cost: $37.50 USD - $72 USD. Click here for more info.
3. August 14-16: The Ohio Paranormal Convention. Where: Dayton, Ohio (Hara area). Cost: $35-$65. Click here for more info.
4. September 24-26: HauntedCon 2009. Where: Hotel St. Michael, Prescott, Arizona. Cost: $99.99-$284. Click here for more info.
5. October 2-3: 2009 Chicago Ghost Conference. Where: The Portage Theater, Chicago, Illinois. Cost: $50. ($30 for students.) Click here for more info.
6. October 8-11: Univ-Con 8 2009. Where: Pennsylvania. (The website hasn't been updated with all 2009 info as of this posting, so I'm not sure if Univ-Con will be held at Penn Stater again.) Advance tickets are on sale though for $25 plus a .99 cent surcharge. Click here for more info. (Click on the Univ-Con 2009 graphic to purchase advanced tickets.)

Ghosts, GPS, and Learning

Earlier today I wrote about using Haunt Jaunts to teach based in part on a headline one of my Google alerts popped up with: "Tracking Ghosts in the Valley: Ashby Lee Students Use GPS for New Learning Program" by Aimee Cregger. Well, I finally got around to reading the whole thing this afternoon. This is exactly the kind of thing I think more schools should offer!

AUGMENTED REALITY

The language and speech pathologists at Ashby Lee applied for a grant after learning about a new program called Augmented Reality. The grant allowed them to purchase 30 GPS units and pay for fifth graders from Ashby Lee to travel to New Market and Lexington.

The other day at Examiner.com I wrote about geocaching. Well, this program sort of combined geocaching with ghost hunting.

HUNTING GHOSTS WITH A GPS

In a manner of speaking. The students had read a book called The Ghost Cadet. They used the GPS units to find five different locations at the New Market Battlefield, a Civil War site, where they were asked questions about the book and also located envelopes containing puzzle pieces. (Which, when put all together, formed a gold watch that played a part in the book.)

They also visited places mentioned in the book, like the Virginia Military Institute where the ghost cadet attended.

ON-SITE LEARNING

If I was a kid, learning this way would totally appeal to me. Reading a book, then going to see places mentioned in the book and using a GPS in a sort of scavenger hunt? Oh yeah, that's totally up my alley.

But it's a great example of how ghosts can play a part in teaching kids --and can be fun as well as educational. Granted, it was a fictional ghost in this case, but still...I'd count this not only as a learning excursion but as a Haunt Jaunt to boot.

Using Haunt Jaunts to Teach

My husband and I don't have kids, but I got to thinking today how, if we did, what a great teaching tool Haunt Jaunts would make. Check out the various lessons that could be taught:

HISTORY LESSONS

Some kids find history dull. Others love it.

I was one of those somewhere in between. Certain things I found interesting (both the first and second World Wars gripped me), but battles with Native Americans over land or the Civil War would put me to sleep --until I was older.

When we moved to Florida a whole new world was opened up to me. We made trips to places like St. Augustine, Charleston, up to Atlanta, and saw sites where history had played out --which made it come to life.

I'll never forget our first trip to Atlanta. We stayed with Bill, one of our friends from college. He was newly arrived to the city and was still exploring it as well. A museum major, he was interested in checking out the Atlanta Cyclorama & Civil War Museum. That's when the Civil War began making sense to me.

The thing that always confounded me about the Civil War was that it happened soooooo long ago. Really it didn't, but I didn't have a frame of reference for the dates. (My parents and grandparents both talked about World War II, so it seemed more current to me. And my grandparents were recently married young adults when World War I was raging, so even it seemed not so long ago, but the Civil War? It seemed centuries old!)

However, suddenly, after visiting Cyclorama, 1861-1865 didn't seem as distant as it once had.

It was also the first time I'd ever taken in a Civil War anything. Maybe if I'd grown up with it I would have had an easier time categorizing it.

But that's just it: exposure. What better way to help kids understand history than exposing them to it? Not only that, but you also expose them to the stories of real people who lived during those times.

For instance, our recent Jaunt to the Sam Davis house was interesting because Sam Davis and his family were everyday people who found themselves living during extraordinary times. It wasn't hard to imagine the ghost of his mother, even if it might only be a residual one, haunting the place and crying on his deathiversary.

Or, like Donna Marsh illustrated when she wrote the "Stones River is Murfreesboro's haunted battlefield," you get to tour places where battles actually took place, walk on the same ground soldiers marched across. It sparks the imagination better than simply reading about it in a book.

GEOGRAPHY TEACHING LESSONS

Geography was easily one of my lousiest subjects in school. And I'd say this goes for most kids. But another great way to use a Haunt Jaunt as a teaching tool!

You can mark out on a map where you're starting from, where you're going, and give kids a perspective of place. Helpful for learning the layout of their own city, state, region, or country --or even if you journey overseas!

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY TEACHING LESSONS

Very few travelers venture out without a camera, but I bet few view them as technology teaching tools. But what a great way to teach kids about how cameras work (and maybe learn a few things yourself while you're at it).

And if you happen to also be a ghost hunter who brings along devices like digital recorders, mini DVs, heck even EMF detectors...well, think back to your youth. Wouldn't learning about science and technology have been a whole lot more interesting using a hands on approach like these devices offer? Your kids can learn about electromagnetic fields (all the things both natural and manmade that emit them), how things are recorded (not just EVPs but our regular, old average human voices as well), and then there's all the lessons they can learn about nature, advancements in technology (like indoor plumbing and electricity since many Haunt Jaunts, especially the historical ones, lack such modern day conveniences)...the opportunities for learning are endless!

And the exposure to such outside-the-box thinking? It just might lead to inspiring the next generation to find new devices to invent --or perhaps new ways to conduct paranormal research.

RELIGION/SPIRITUALITY TEACHING LESSONS

It's hard not to wonder about "The Beyond" when you talk about ghosts. What a great opportunity to introduce your kids to different beliefs from different cultures about ghosts, death and dying, and our purpose for being Here. Or to explore your own spiritual roots a little deeper and understand your denomination's take on such matters.

I'm sure there are even more teaching tools Haunt Jaunts could be used for, but these were the ones that sprung immediately to my mind. Can you think of other lessons Haunt Jaunts could teach? I'd love to hear about them!