Creating a California mission model can be a fun and creative school project, and Mission San Luis Rey is a beautiful choice. Here is a step-by-step guide for building a model based on our hands-on experience.

Materials Needed

• Styrofoam sheets
• Pencil and paper
• Knife (for cutting styrofoam)
• Hot glue gun and glue sticks
• Packing box flap lids
• Brown paper (for doors)
• Cricut machine (optional for precise door cutouts)
• Scrapbooking paper
• Green paper (or grass paper, though plain green paper works fine)
• Air-dry clay
• Small bells
• Sticks (for crosses)
• Pre-made miniature trees (found at craft stores like Michael’s)
• Paint if needed. 

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Step 1: Design and Sketch

1. Start by sketching your mission on a piece of paper.
2. Once you are happy with the design, cut it out to create a template.

Step 2: Build the Base Structure

1. Place your paper template on a sheet of styrofoam.
2. Trace the outline with a pencil.
3. Using a knife (not scissors), carefully poke and cut along the outline to create the building shapes.
4. Glue the cut-out buildings onto your base using a glue cube or hot glue gun.

Step 3: Create the Buildings and Roof

1. Cut rectangles of styrofoam to form the main buildings.
2. For the roof, use the flaps from a packing box. Tear off the top layer to reveal the corrugated ridges.
3. Hot glue the ridged cardboard onto the roofs.

Step 4: Add Doors, Bells, and Crosses

1. Cut 1–2 inch doors from brown paper using a Cricut for clean shapes. Hot glue them onto the buildings.
2. Attach small bells to the building with hot glue for the mission’s signature touches.
3. Create crosses using small sticks from outdoors. Hot glue the sticks together, then carefully poke them through the styrofoam roof. At first, I tried to hot glue them onto but it stayed to kind of melt the styrofoam.

Step 5: Landscaping the Mission Grounds

1. Cover the ground with green paper. Grass paper is optional but doesn’t add much texture.
2. Use scrapbooking paper for additional decorative elements or pathways.
3. Mold a small fountain with air-dry clay for the courtyard.
4. Add pre-made miniature trees from a craft store like Michael’s.
5. Use blue paint (we mixed with silver glitter) to paint the very small section on the top. 

Final Touches

Your Mission San Luis Rey model is now complete and ready for your project display!

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Tip: Save money by using simple green paper for grass and get creative with materials you already have at home.