Pirate Day
By Susan M. Dailey

             Before telling this story, get a bandanna, earring, small sticker to use as a tattoo and an eye patch.  Also get a box and some “treasure” to put in it.  I used small Twix candy bars, but stickers, removable tattoos, bookmarks, etc. would work.  Decide where you are going to hide the treasure and then make a map that leads to the treasure.  On the treasure map, a dash represented one footstep.  I put up a picture of a refrigerator and a doghouse in the library to correspond with the story.  I told this story just before we did the craft.

            It was a pirate day for Peggy’s family.  Peggy had just read a story about pirates.  She knew that they were grouchy, frowned a lot and often said “aaarrrgh!”  (have kids practice saying “aaarrrgh” while making frowning face) 

That morning when Peggy’s dad cut himself shaving, he said… “aaarrrgh!”  (pause & let kids say it with you)  And when Peggy tried to wake her sister up for school, her sister said “aaarrrgh!”  When Peggy’s mom discovered that there wasn’t any coffee for breakfast, her mom said “aaarrrgh!”  When Peggy forgot it wasn’t her turn and climbed into the front seat of the car, her brother said “aaarrrgh!”  And then he said, “Get in the back seat or I’ll make you walk the plank!”  It was definitely a pirate day!

Things weren’t any better after school.  Peggy’s dad came to pick them up from school and they got into a traffic jam so he said “aaarrrgh!”  When Peggy’s sister got out of the car, she dropped her book pack.  Papers and books went flying everywhere and Peggy’s sister said “aaarrrgh!”  In the house, her mom was having computer problems and she said “aaarrrgh!”  When Peggy asked her brother to play with her, he said “aaarrrgh!”  And then he said, “Get out of my room, Peg Leg.  Peggy, the peg leg pirate!” 

That made Peggy say “aaarrrgh!”  She stomped to her room.  If it was going to be a pirate day, she might as well look like one.  She dug in her box of dress-up clothes.  She found a bandanna that she tied around her head.  (put on items as mentioned)  She found a big hoop earring—just one, but that was perfect for a pirate—and clipped it on.  Peggy knew that pirates usually had tattoos.  She put a sticker on her hand as a tattoo.  In the bottom of the box, Peggy found the eye patch her brother had won when he was a pirate at Halloween.

Peggy stomped to the kitchen where her parents were still trying to fix the computer.  “Ahoy, ye scalawags.  They’ll be a mutiny if there’s not something good to eat in this galley?”

Peggy’s mom and dad looked at her.  They didn’t say “aaarrrgh!”  Instead they laughed and laughed.  Then her mom said, “Peggy, you are a treasure!”

A treasure thought Peggy.  Pirates have hidden treasure.  She ran to her room and got out a small box that she kept her crayons in.  She filled it with treasure.  Then she hid the box.  She ran back to her room and made a map.  She ran to the living room where her brother and sister were watching television.

“Shiver me timbers,” Peggy said.  “Why are you mateys just sitting there?  There’s a treasure to be found!”  She held out the map.  (hold up map)  Her brother and sister didn’t say “aaarrrgh!”  They grabbed the map.  They laughed as they followed it.  They took 8 steps to the door.  Then they took 6 steps to the refrigerator.  They took another 5 steps to the back door and 8 steps to the doghouse.  They took 7 more steps and came to where the big X was on the map.  There was the treasure!  They opened the box.  They definitely didn’t say “aaarrrgh!”  They said “Yum!!” 

Would you like to see if we can find a treasure?  (Use map to find the treasure box you hid earlier)