After creating a really fun surgery room transformation (click here for details!) to prepare for our state writing exam, I knew I’d have to do something just as fun for our reading exam. I decided to go with a pirate theme for this transformation! Keep reading to see how I did it, and hopefully get inspired to do this in your classroom too!

The best part of this whole thing, aside from it being engaging, meaningful, and memorable – is that it was FREE! I didn’t have to spend any money. I just used what I already had to put it together! Can it get any better than that?!

Because I have some students in person this year, and some fully virtual, I had to make this activity work for both. So, I decided that all the activities would be digital. I created Google Forms with the different activities, and linked them all to a “treasure map” I created on Google Slides. Scroll down to see what it looks like!

Here is the Google Slide I made to house all of the Google Forms activities. Each location on the map links to a Google Form with activities aligned with that topic.
Here’s what the Google Forms look like! They have a pirate theme, and the title aligns with the location on the map. The content on each form is a mixture of free TPT resources, things I’ve purchased, and things I’ve created myself. I used data to identify the most commonly missed topics to determine the focus of the activities.

Small Group / Differentiated Support Opportunity!

While students were busy working their way through the treasure map, I was able to pull small groups to review specific skills based on student need. I tried to pull a lot of pirate themed activities for my small group work – and the kids really loved it!

In small groups, we worked through a reader’s theater with some STAAR aligned questions, and did a fun pirate themed context clues activity! For my online kiddos, I simply presented my screen and shared these digitally.

Pirate Room Decor

I kept things really simple this time. The main focal point of the “decor” was a simple Google Slide I created and projected on my SmartBoard. I also found a template online for free printable pirate hats. To save money, I used these. But, to save time you could easily order pirate hats from Amazon. I also created a fun pennant banner with paper and string I already had. All in all, this transformation cost me $0! Can you believe it?!

Here’s what I projected up on my board!
Here is a pirate hat and a banner in-the-making!

The finished banner!
Treasure!

How to recreate this in your classroom….

If you want to do a pirate room transformation yourself, I highly recommend it! Check out the list below for an idea of what you might want to put together:

  1. The content – Create a pirate themed Google Slide and link Google Forms activities to them.
  2. A slide or image to project to set the scene.
  3. Create a banner out of paper and string, then hang it in your doorway or around the room.
  4. Find a free printable pirate hat template online, or order pirate hats for each of your students on Amazon.
  5. Have fun with it! You can dress up if you want, add more to the decor, buy a treasure chest and fill it with loot – the possibilities are endless!

Leave me a comment below letting me know if you plan on trying a pirate themed classroom transformation! I’d love to hear all about it!