Pirate Treasure Hunt

One of the great parent truths: The more forbidden an activity, the more kids want to do it. So what better way to learn math than as a swashbuckling pirate?

In Pirate Treasure Hunt the kids plotted coordinate points on a grid, then connected the dots to make a map showing a seafaring ship and an island with treasure. They didn’t even realize Captain Hook was secretly teaching them about x- and y-axes and the coordinate plane. Arrrrggghhh!

Better yet, the kids then drew random coordinate pairs from a small golden pouch to find out where on the map they landed. If a pirate landed on the island, all the other pirates got to dive into the bag to try to get a share of treasure.

Maps are a part of daily life, so it’s critical to know how to read one. You never know when your cellphone or Garmin will go kaput. Besides, some old-school maps are on paper only!

To train your kids’ skills, have them pick a spot where they’d like to go, and let them direct the steering! (Do this when you don’t have a hard deadline for arrival.)

  • If you’re going to walk, print a map of your neighborhood, then hand it to them and let them steer your journey. See if they can get you there!
  • If you’re going to drive, pull up the map on a phone or car GPS they can see. Zoom out to show your starting point and destination, then let them tell you “left” and “right” as you drive.

Kids draw a huge boost of confidence from exercises like this when they succeed!