Pirates Memory Game for Preschoolers

Affiliate Disclosure: “This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase using those links.”

Talk Like a Pirate Day is September 19, and this Pirates Memory Game is a fun and educational way to change the routine a little and complement your lesson planning to celebrate this day with your preschoolers.

Story Behind the Talk Like a Pirate Day

Talk Like a Pirate Day is not an actual holiday. It started in 1995 when two friends from Oregon began to joke about it while playing racquetball. After that, they got together with friends every year to have fun.

Things changed in 2003 when they wrote to Dave Barry, who ran a humor column and asked him to be their spokesperson to celebrate this day. The idea appealed to Mr. Barry, who agreed to write in his column about this “holiday” and inspired many people to start events and celebrations across the country.

Pirates Memory Game

Memory games are one of the activities that preschoolers like. This particular one is super easy to prepare, and it’s very educational because it helps children pay attention to details to recognize the pairs of cards. This will help them improve their visual discrimination, strengthen their concentration, focus, and memory, and work on one-to-one correspondence and creating set skills.

This FREE Pirates Memory Game will bring a lot of fun to your classroom and friendly competition among your preschoolers as they work on essential skills that will be useful for their integral development.

It includes two pages with nine cards each. You don’t have to use all of them. Just remember always to use one pair of each card. The file is at the end of this post, so grab it.

If your preschoolers have been exposed to other memory games, they can work independently. However, new students or children unfamiliar with these types of games will need your guidance.

How to Prepare and Play the Pirate Memory Game

This game’s cards must be durable and robust because the children will manipulate them in any way, and you want them to last a long time. Once you get them ready, you might want to place them in a small basket, a little box, or a Ziploc bag so they can stay together and you don’t lose some of the cards.

To get this Pirates Memory Game ready, you will need these materials:

FREE Pirate Memory Game cards are found at the end of this post.
Printer
White cardstock
Scissors
Laminator
Laminator sheets

Begin by printing two sets of each page using white cardstock. Then, cut out and laminate each of the tiles to protect them and make them last longer. You can store the game in a pencil case or a Ziploc bag to protect it and use it year after year.

To play, lay the cards face down in rows and columns so your preschoolers can only see the backside, and invite them to join you for a matching game!

Keep it super simple and start by playing like any traditional memory game. Children select two cards to turn over and try to make a match. If a match is made, the preschooler gets to keep the cards. If not, the cards must be turned back over, and the next preschooler takes the turn.

Books About Pirates for Preschoolers

If you have read some of my articles, you probably know by now that I am a huge fan and user of storybooks for everything. I wanted to include some of my favorite books about pirates. You can find these books in the library, a used books store, and on Amazon. I included my Amazon links in the titles if you want to purchase some.

Where Do Pirates Go on Vacation? by Kim Annis is a fun adventure sure to delight any child. If you or your child likes pirates, guessing games, rhyming adventures, and vividly illustrated scenes.

Pirates Don’t Knit! by Melinda Kinsman includes full-page illustrations, rhymes, short verses, and a few challenging words to help expand your child’s vocabulary that kids will love.

Pirate Boy by Eve Bunting is the story of a boy named Danny who wonders what would happen if he sailed away on a pirate ship. Luckily, his mother reassures him that she will find him. Children will love this adventurous and reassuring tale of a mother’s love.

Shiver Me Letters: A Pirate ABC by June Sobel is a fun story about the captain of a pirate crew who orders them to capture the entire alphabet, embarking on an alphabet adventure unlike any other until they’ve found an A, a Z, and everything in between.

Good Night Pirate Ship by Adam Gamble explores treasure chests, gold doubloons, pirate flags, cannons and cannonballs, swords, spyglasses, Spanish forts, pirate clothing, pirate foods, the Caribbean, the Royal British Navy, and more.

Go, Go, Pirate Boat by Katrina Charman is a rhyming story about pirates that go on a nautical adventure to find a treasure chest, using a text that is read aloud to the tune of Row Row, Row Your Boat.

Count With The Pirates! by Laura Coleman includes several types of puzzles to help children develop observational skills and apply numbers to objects, having fun without even knowing they’re learning.

The Berenstain Bears Pirate Adventure by Mike Berenstain takes the Captain Cub, Brown Bear the Pirate, and Honey Bones on the isle of their imagination.

Pin It For Later

If you are in a rush and don’t have time to read the post and download the printable but want to save it for later, pin this to one of your Pinterest boards.

Don’t forget to grab your free Pirates Memory Game printable by clicking the link below!

Then check out other FREE memory games and other printables, and get them too, to expand your activities collection, and help your preschoolers have fun while learning.