September 19th is a favorite day for the buccaneers out there: International Talk Like A Pirate Day! One needs only to head over to the ITLAPD Facebook page to see that the day is a favorite among many.

Kids love pirates, and with good reason. They get to dress up, speak differently, and attack enemies… but did you know you can take an educational spin on Talk Like a Pirate Day?

10 Ways to Make Talk Like a Pirate Day Fun… and Educational!

1. Teach map skills through fantastic books

All you need is a fantastic stack of books and your favorite pirates. Announce that the couch is your pirate ship for the day, then insist you need all hands on deck. Snuggle up under a blanket and read ’til your hearties are content. Here are a few of our family’s favorite storybooks that teach map skills:

• The Once Upon a Time Map Book: Take a Tour of Six Enchanted Lands by B. G. Hennessy
• The Scary Places Map Book: Seven Terrifying Tours by B. G. Hennessy
• Pirate Treasure Map: A Fairytale Adventure by Colin Hawkins
• At the Same Moment, Around the World by Clotilde Perrin

2. Make your own compass rose

It’s one thing to talk about all of the elements of a map, but it’s another thing to make your own. Understanding directions can be tricky for young kids. An easy way to help young children understand directionality is by making your very own compass rose.

3. Learn about map grids by playing Battleship and other games

Games are a huge part of our homeschool. Why not up the Talk Like A Pirate Day fun by adding games? Here are some of our family’s favorite games that teach geography and map skills:

• Unbored Games: Treasure Hunt
• Battleship
• Scrambled States
• Borderline
• Brain Box: The World
• Geo Bingo World
• Geo Bingo USA
• Professor Noggin Geography of the United States

4. Make your own map using grids

Teach your children about map grids the hands-on way by actually making your own. Pick a room in your house or map your backyard. Where is the swing set located? What about that big ol’ tree?

5. Make your own aged pirate maps

Do you want your map to look more authentic, like a real pirate map? Click the link above to discover a super-simple hack!

6. Make your own map… and treasure hunt!

Now that you understand directionality and map grids, make an authentic pirate map and have a treasure hunt. My children had an absolute blast doing this last year!

7. Make your own map vocabulary flash cards

Some map vocabulary is harder to learn. We had luck by pairing the flashcards above with this next item…

8. Learn about landforms using playdough

Pick a flash card and use playdough to create the landform! It’s messy, hands-on fun for your little buccaneers!

9. Have some fun with Google Earth

I put this one at the end because man Google Earth is wildly addicting! There is so much fun to be had and countless learning opportunities at the click of a mouse!

10. Top it all off with a map-themed movie night!

There are oodles of options for a map-themed family movie night, but it depends on the age of your children. Whether you pick Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego, The Goonies, Indiana Jones, Lord of the Rings, or Pirates of the Caribbean, a map-themed movie night is a perfect way to end a day of swashbuckling!

Now, it’s your turn. Tell me: How does your family celebrate International Talk Like a Pirate Day? Share here!