Pirate Adventures (Challenge Kit)

This kit was created to assist you in completing the Pirate Adventures Challenge Kit. Included are facts, stories, crafts, games, recipes and information that can be copied and distributed to the participants working on this kit.

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Fascinating Facts

• A flag with a white skull and crossbones on a black background is called a Jolly Roger. It was designed to strike fear into the hearts of a pirate’s enemies; however, the Jolly Roger wasn’t flown by all pirates. Pirates of the Spanish Main were usually the only ones to fly this flag.
• Women were typically not allowed on pirate vessels because it was believed that a woman on board brought bad luck. However, some women still became pirates by dressing, fighting, and cursing like men.
• The “Golden Age of Piracy” was from 1650 to 1730.
• Article III of the Pirate Code of Conduct (Bartholomew Roberts Shipboard Articles 1721) states that gambling, an often pictured time of pirates, was not allowed on most pirate ships; instead, they had to gamble whenever they made port. Anyone caught by the captain would be severely punished for breaking the code.
• The term “Davy Jones’ Locker” dates back to 1700. In pirate slang, Davy Jones meant the Devil and being sent to “Davy Jones’ Locker” meant that you weren’t going to heaven.
• Pirates believed that wearing pierced earrings of precious metals such as silver and gold would improve their eyesight.
• St. Thomas, an island in the Caribbean, has a place called “Blackbeard’s Castle.” The island’s lore states that it is believed that this is where the famous pirate spent many hours looking out for approaching ships.

Fact or Fiction?

Pirates wore eye patches to improve their night vision. FACT!

• The MythBusters proved that wearing an eye patch would actually improve a person’s night vision because one eye stays in night vision mode and doesn’t get used to the light. For more details, follow the MythBuster link in the Helpful Website section.

Powder monkeys are small monkeys that help the captain of a ship by putting various substances in his pipe so it would always be ready to smoke. FICTION!

• A powder monkey was a position on the ship given to young boys who had to clean and load the guns during battle. Eventually, they were promoted to gunner’s mate or gunner if they survived.

A common alcoholic drink drunk by pirates was called grog. FACT!

• Grog was a rum, water, lemon juice, and sugar mixture derived from a nickname for an admiral who liked to drink.

Teaching Pages Overview

• Being A Pirate
  • Learn how a pirate dressed
  • Learn to talk like a pirate
• Interesting Stories
  • Buried treasure
  • Cursed treasure
• Pirate Fables
  • Blackbeard
  • Calico Jack
  • Anne Bonny
  • Mary Read
  • Henry Morgan
• Knowing Your Knots
  • The "S" Knot
  • Half-S
  • Modified Timber Hitch
  • Reef or Square Knot
  • Fisherman's Knot
  • Clove Hitch
  • Slip Knot
  • Bowline
• Pirate Ship Know-How
  • Knowing Your Ship
  • Knowing Your Bearings

Teaching: Being A Pirate

Dress Like A Pirate

When most people think of a pirate they imagine the stereotypical image that of a man dressed in a tricorn hat, long coat, knee breeches buckled shoes or bucket topped boots. A good example of this typical pirate is Jack Sparrow off Pirates of the Caribbean (2003). However history, illustrations, and common sense tell another story.

Pirate Dress Of The 18th Century

Hats

When at sea, it was common for sailors to wear thrum caps, furry hats, knitted caps or similar headdresses. Since pirates are essentially sailors, it can be assumed that they would wear this type of practical hat as well. Although tricorns were worn by pirates, one has to question their practicality. A strong wind would likely blow it right off your head. Also commonly worn by pirates was the kerchief tied around their head.

Jackets

A long coat would have been as impractical on a ship as tricorn hats. The big cuffs would have interfered with the daily running of a ship. The preferred coat of the 18th century would have been short and straight-cut.

Trousers

The pirates of the 18th century undoubtedly wore knee breeches at sea, but then trousers were invented, and they became very popular amongst the sailors. Trousers tended to be loose and came in styles that were cut just above the ankle to about halfway up the calf.

Footwear

Very few period pictures show pirate captains wearing bucket-topped boots. Like the tricorns and the long coats, these boots would have been impractical on a ship as the hard leather soles would cause the captain to slip and slide all over the ship's deck. Instead, sailors spent most of their time barefoot so they could grip the deck.

Other Gear

In several pictures, pirates have been shown to be wearing a type of scarf called stocks wrapped tightly around their necks just for fashion's sake. On the other hand, brightly coloured sashes were worn only to show off, especially red coloured ones, since red dye was expensive and only the wealthy could afford to wear them. Originally, sashes were worn by military officers, but soon became a common sight at sea.

Teaching: Interesting Stories

Note: these stories are based on historical facts, but select details were left out to add an air of mystery and suspense.

Oak Island Treasure Pit

It may surprise you to learn that there is a story of buried treasure right here in Canada. Near Nova Scotia, there is a place called Oak Island, which supposedly contains a pit filled with long-buried treasure. The treasure pit, to date, is almost 200 feet deep and told to be protected by an elaborate set of booby traps, underground channels that constantly flood the pit with water and cause it to cave in. People have been trying to find out what lies at the bottom of this pit since 1795; six have even lost their lives in accidents while hunting the mysterious treasure, and still, none have prevailed.

The story of the Oak Island treasure pit is fascinating, complex, and full of mystery. The Oak Island treasure has been sought by many individuals and corporations for over 200 years. Explorers from far and wide have flocked to it, from the three teenagers who first discovered the site to former US President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The story of the Oak Island Treasure Pit has been written about in numerous books. To date, the treasure has not been uncovered, but tantalizing glimpses of what are supposedly parts of the treasure have been reported.

There are many theories about what the mystery treasure could be. The most popular one is the theory that Captain Kidd, an 18th-century pirate who came to the Oak Island region to relax and repair his ships, buried his treasure so none could find it.

Another theory suggests that the lost crown jewels of France are hidden in the treasure pit. In 1791, the jewels went missing and were rumoured to have been smuggled to Louisburg, which is north of Oak Island (in Cape Breton). But since Louisburg was frequently attacked by the British, it was considered unsafe, and the jewels were transported to Oak Island.

Still others have speculated that the Oak Island pit was dug to hold treasure much more exotic than gold or silver. Based on the evidence of a piece of parchment paper brought up from the pit by one of the treasure hunters, another theory is that English philosopher Francis Bacon used the pit to hide documents proving him to be the author of William Shakespeare’s plays. It has also been asserted that the pit may have been dug by exiled Knights Templar and that it is the last resting place of the Holy Grail or even the holy Ark of the Covenant. Since no one has been able to dig to the bottom of the Oak Island treasure pit, none of these theories can be proven.

Over the 200 years treasure hunters have been excavating, they have encountered oak log platforms every ten feet or so to the thirty-foot level and multiple layers of charcoal, putty, and coconut fibre in 1849. At the 98-foot level, a spruce platform guarding two oak chests containing loose metal pieces was discovered.

Early on in the hunt for the Treasure, an inscribed stone (which has been lost over time) was found face down in the Pit. There have been various interpretations made of the inscription. The most commonly accepted translation is: “Forty feet below two million pounds are buried.”

Legend Of The Cursed French Blue Diamond

The French Blue Diamond, now called the Hope Diamond, is a stone the size of a pigeon egg and is dark blue in colour, appearing blackish-blue in incandescent light. When exposed to short-wave ultraviolet light, the diamond produces a brilliant red phosphorescence, a kind of red glow-in-the-dark effect, that continues for some time after the light has been switched off. The stone has been described as feeling cool to the touch. Misfortune is said to follow this treasure wherever it goes.

The story goes that one billion years ago, hot magma was working its way to the surface through a kimberlite pipe, and with the magma was a large steel-blue diamond. The diamond was found in India and was shaped into a rough triangle weighing 112 carats (worth 720,000 livres). It was purchased by a French merchant, Jean Baptiste Tavernier, and sold to King Louis XV. The stone was then re-cut into a 67-carat diamond called the “Blue Diamond of the Crown of France” or simply
called the “French Blue.” The stone remained in the royal line until 1793, when Louse XVI and Marie Antoinette were beheaded, and the diamond was stolen, never to be seen again, or so it would seem.

In 1812, a 44.5-carat blue diamond surfaced in London. King George IV purchased the diamond, but he also ran into misfortune, and the diamond was sold to pay off debts at his death in 1830. The diamond passed through many hands but was then acquired by Henry Philip Hope, and the name changed to the “Hope Diamond.” The diamond seemed to once again work its magic, and the Hope family was forced to sell the stone. In 1958, the Hope diamond was donated to the Smithsonian Institute, and there it resides today, located in a museum in Washington, D.C.

Teaching: Pirate Fables

Blackbeard

Edward Teach, known better as Blackbeard, was the fiercest and most feared pirate to ever sail the seven seas. He earned the nickname “Blackbeard” because of his long black beard, which almost covered his whole face. This gave him a frightening, wild look, but he became even scarier when he charged into battle because his beard would smoke. Blackbeard had a habit of weaving hemp into his beard and lighting it when he saw his enemies. He used this fear tactic to scare his opponents and victims into surrendering before he even attacked them. Most of Blackbeard’s crew believed he was the devil.

Blackbeard started his pirating career around 1713 when he was just a crew member on a Jamaican pirate sloop and died on November 22, 1718, when he was killed in a battle with the Royal Navy. It took five gunshots and more than twenty sword cuts until he finally died. During his pirating profession, Blackbeard fought many battles, plundered over 40 ships, and became one of the most famous pirates to ever exist.

Calico Jack

“Calico Jack” was the nickname for John Rackham, a not-so-famous pirate. He was known for wearing multi-coloured calico coats and britches, which is where he gained his nickname. Calico Jack is better known for his association with Anne Bonny and Mary Read, two famous female pirates.

Anne Bonny

Born in Ireland, Anne Bonny was a headstrong, fiercely independent woman with a vicious temper and legendary courage. She married a small-time pirate named James Bonny, who wanted her father’s estate, but he disowned her, foiling James’ plans. Later, she left James to become the mistress of “Calico Jack” and join his crew on a pirate sloop called Revenge. She was eventually captured along with another famous pirate, Mary Read, and sentenced to hang. However, both Bonny and Read were given a stay of execution because they were both found to be pregnant. Bonny then disappeared from records until her death in 1782 at the age of eighty. No one truly knows how she escaped the law, but speculators have suggested that she was smuggled away by her father.

Henry Morgan

Morgan was born in Wales in 1635. Not many pirates earned the title “Sir” since they were considered to be criminals. But Henry Morgan did. He was knighted in 1674 by King Charles II after pulling off a daring and spectacular raid on one of the richest cities at that time — Panama City. He was one of the bravest, most intelligent and successful swashbucklers in all of history.

Captain Morgan spent a lot of time in the islands of the Bahamas. He would wreak havoc, and he buried a great deal of treasure. Morgan’s Bluff, the highest point on Andros Island, is named after Captain Morgan.

Mary Read

Since she was very young, Read led a man’s life. Her mother raised her as a boy to receive financial support until her teen years, when Read went to work aboard a ship. Her next employment was with the military service, and there she stayed until she fell in love with a Flemish soldier. After they were wed, Read dressed as a woman for the first time. Unfortunately, the soldier died young, and Read went back to life as a man. She boarded a ship bound for the West Indies, but it was captured by pirates who forced her to join them.

In 1720, she joined the pirate “Calico Jack” and became close friends with Anne Bonny. At one point, “Calico Jack” tried to kill her because he was jealous that Bonny found Read attractive. Fortunately, Read revealed that she was actually a female and thus was spared. Read was later captured along with John Rackham and Anne Bonny, but she escaped hanging due to her pregnancy. She died a short time later, though, of disease and fever while still in prison.

Teaching: Knowing Your Knots

Parts Of A Rope

Before you start tying knots just yet, there is some terminology that you have to learn to understand these instructions. A rope can be broken down into three sections: two ends and a standing part. Some knots are formed by two ends (reef knot), some by the end and the standing part (bowline), and some by the standing part alone (sheepshank).

Although some knots may appear difficult, they can all be broken down into three basic terms: bight, standing part, and free/working end. A bight is any curved section between the ends of the rope. The standing part is the section of the rope not involved in the knot, and the free/working end is the end of the rope that you are using to make the knot.

You also need to know the difference between an overhand loop and an underhand loop. An overhand loop is where the end of the rope comes above the standing part to form a loop, and an underhand loop has the end of the rope going under the standing part to form a loop.

Teaching: Knowing Your Ship

Teaching: Knowing Your Bearings

Learning The Basics

Begin by teaching your girls the four basic directions: north, east, south, and west. An easy way to help the girls remember these is to use phrases such as “Never Eat Soggy Waffles.” Show them how each letter in the phrase stands for a direction (the “n” in “never” represents “north”) and teach them that the order of the directions in the phrase is the same as the rotation of a clock’s hands

8 Points On A Compass

Next, introduce the girls to the four intermediary directions: northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest. Have them draw a compass on a sheet of paper with both the basic directions and the intermediary directions to make sure they have them down pat.

Working To Find North

Show your girls a compass and explain that it will always point to the north. Allow them to practice turning their bodies in different directions and moving the compass to various locations, noting which direction the compass points each time.

Mastering The Compass

Practice finding directions other than north. South is the easiest to find since it’s simply the opposite of north. If you want to go south, you just go in the opposite direction of the way the compass is pointing. To find the east, go to the right of the direction the compass points. To find the west, go to the left of the compass arrow.

What Is A Compass Rose

A compass rose is a figure on a compass or map used to display the cardinal directions. Since the 1300s, the compass rose has been drawn on charts and maps. Originally, the compass rose was called a wind rose because it was used to indicate the directions of the winds. The 32 points of the compass rose come from the directions of the eight major winds, the eight half-winds and the sixteen quarter-winds, but today, we just use it to show the four cardinal directions. The term “rose” comes from the figure’s compass points resembling rose petals.

Extra Activities and Supplementals

Once you have finished this challenge kit, use code ECK011 for 20% off the Pirate Adventures badge!