Doing a pirates theme with your kid(s) is a fun and easy way to keep them busy during those hot summer days. I planned an entire week worth (about 20-minutes per day) with diverse activities including worksheets, coloring pages, gross motor activities and going on a treasure hunt (of course)!
The part that is the most fun – dress up and treasure hunt – will cost, but it doesn’t break the bank! I may have some free ways for you to do it too! However, if you do purchase the items I mention, they are good to hang on to and break out later. I did this theme two years ago and my son still loves to pull out the dress up items and treasure.
Here is what I did with the kids based on each category.
Worksheets/Coloring Pages:
I found these free downloadable pirate coloring pages here. I printed several different ones for the kids to do during coloring time.
We also did a pirate map tracing activity where the kids had to trace the line on the map to each “island.” On each island there was a different shaped jewel for them to trace. When the tracing was done they were able to color it.
We also did another pirate tracing worksheet where they traced different kinds of lines from the pirate to the treasure. They also colored this one when they were done.
This next worksheet is great for kids learning their colors or learning how to read. The kids I had at the time were younger so it was more about learning their colors. They were supposed to color each jewel the correct color noted below. I colored the word for each color since they couldn’t read.
This next one the kids had so much fun with! I found the outline of a pirate map below and the kids could draw and color their own map! BONUS IDEA: Create a treasure hunt based on the map they draw!
Crafts:
The kids colored a pirates hat that I was able to cut out and staple together for them to wear. I found the free download for the template here.
Another craft we did was make pirate flags. This took more prep on my end with hot gluing popsicle sticks together to make it look like a flag. I used one jumbo popsicle sticks as the “pole” the flag is hanging on. Then I hot glued four small popsicle sticks vertically off of the jumbo popsicle stick. The kids colored the flag and placed a skull and cross bones sticker in the middle that you can find here.
Games, Songs & Activities:
My favorite activity from the week (& probably the kids’ too) was playing dress up and going on a treasure hunt. I purchased this set that included blow up swords, eye patches and pirate hats. Two years later and my son still plays dress up with these items.
If you’re not wanting to pay for items, but would still like to do this here are some easy alternatives:
- Hat – use the free printable from above that the kids color themselves
- Eye patch – you can take some black paper and hole punch on two sides to put some string through and tie around their head
- Sword – if you have an extra pool noodle around the house you could cut that in half for a pretend sword. Another option could be gluing paper towel rolls together and cover them with duct tape if you want that silver color.
For the treasure hunt – I also purchased a treasure box that came filled with all kinds of jewels of all colors. It also came with a treasure map, compass and gold coins. This was more expensive than the dress up clothes, but once again is something my son still plays with.
You could also find a small box around your house though and place fun items in it for treasure like coins, chocolates, stickers, toys, etc.
For the hunt – I came up with my own clues. At each place the clue led the kids to, I drew an ‘x’ with chalk. Eventually, it led the kids to my mailbox where the treasure box was inside. Since the kids were only two and three at the time I held all the clues. For older kids – you could leave the clues at each spot for them to read.
Another fun thing to do while playing dress up is have the kids dance to some pirate songs! Here is one of our favorites, Danny Go, of course!
We also played a pirates memory game that I printed from this blog. Once I printed – I laminated and cut out. Laminating this game makes it easy to keep and play again later!
Let me know if you decide to give this theme a try for your kid(s)!