Ahoy there!! Pirate themed programme ideas! Join in the NI Squirrel Association 25th Silver Anniversary celebrations with a treasure trove of pirate themed programme ideas!! Celebration badges can be worn for a two-year period to ensure that the excitement for our Squirrels just goes on and on!! 25th Anniversary badges are available free of charge from the Badge Secretary – contact details can be found at www.scoutsni.com/squirrels

o Decorate the venue or provide ‘party bag’ gifts for the Squirrels, great ideas can be found at ü peeks.co.uk – selection of pirate bunting, balloons, fancy dress costumes ü elliottsfancydress.co.uk – Ann Street Belfast BT1 3HH – flags, bunting, accessories, fancy dress ü bakerross.co.uk – selection of tattoos, pencils, jet balls, mini note books ü Poundland/Poundworld and bargain shops usually have a range of pirate themed party items

o Set the scene with some pirate stories ü On a Pirate Ship – Sarah Courtauld & Benji Davies – Usborne ü The Pirate who said Please – Timothy Knapman – QED Publishing ü Shiver Me Timbers – Oakley graham & Nina Caniac – Top That Books ü Cats Ahoy! – Peter Bently & Jim Field – MacMillan Children’s Books ü The Mouse who Sailed the Seas – Amy Sparkes & Nick East – Egmont ü The Barefoot Book of Pirates – Richard Walker & Olwyn Whelan – Barefoot Books

o Enjoy some pirate themed songs and rhymes ü Have fun adding plenty of actions!

o Play some pirate themed games

ü Pirate Corners – pop up some pirate themed pictures around the meeting place. Squirrels can run, hop, jump, skip, etc. to the appropriate picture when a Leader calls it out!

ü Walk the Plank – use a length of blue fabric or plastic for the sea, a strip of wood or thick cardboard for the plank and some blow-up beach toys (killer whales and dolphins from Pound shops!), sea-themed toys. Perhaps colour-in or make ‘junk art’ sea creatures. Some Squirrels lurk in the ‘water’ to attack the others ‘walking the plank’!

ü Play Pirate Bingo! – use counters, buttons, small card circles or bingo markers to mark off sheets as images are called out!

o Make some pirate crafts! ü Dress up as a pirate – make a simple pirate mask ü Create pirate islands with collage materials and found items – leaves, twigs, small stones and sand! ü Colour a pirate treasure map – X marks the spot! ü Make bookmarks from large size lolly sticks and pirate/sea creature stickers from Baker Ross or discount stores ü Check out bakerross.co.uk for lots of ready-to-use pirate crafts ü Make some fun finger puppets – a pirate or a pirate’s parrot! ü Giant size junk-art sea creatures for the ‘Walk the Plank’ game ü Paper plate pirate faces ü Paper plate pirate ships complete with the Jolly Roger!! Draw round Squirrel’s hand to make the flying pirate flag!

Pirate songs and rhymes!!

I KNOW A PIRATE HAD A DOG! I know a pirate had a dog and BINGO was his name o! B I N G O, B I N G O, B I N G O and Bingo was his name o! Repeat again but clap instead of singing the letter B. Continue to sing but clap instead of letters I N G and O!

A PIRATE WENT TO SEA, SEA, SEA! A pirate went to sea, sea, sea to see what he could see, see, see! But all that he could see, see, see was the bottom of the deep blue sea, sea, sea!

The pirate looked up high, high, high for treasure in the sky, sky, sky! But when he looked up high, high, high the sun shone in his eye, eye, eye!

The pirate looked down low, low, low for treasure far below, low, low! But when he looked down low, low, low a big fish scared him so, so, so!

THE DAY I WENT TO SEA When I was one, I ate a bun the day I went to sea I climbed aboard a pirate ship and the captain said to me, ‘I’m going this way, that way, forwards, backwards, over the deep blue sea, A bottle of rum to fill my tum and that’s the life for me!’ When I was two, I tied my show the day I went to sea I climbed aboard a pirate ship ………. When I was three, I climbed a tree the day I went to sea I climbed aboard a pirate ship ……… When I was four, I locked the door the day I went to sea I climbed aboard a pirate ship ………

JOLLY PIRATES Five jolly pirates sailing out to sea, five jolly pirates sailing out to sea But if one jumps over board, 1 2 3, there’d be four jolly pirates sailing out to sea!

Four jolly pirates sailing out to sea………..and so on!

ROW, ROW, ROW YOUR BOAT

Row, row, row your boat far across the sea. Heave ho, heave ho, that’s the life for me!

Row, row, row your boat far across the sea. Help there’s a pirate ship heading straight for me!

Row, row, row your boat quickly back to shore. Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily safe at last, once more!

THE QUARTER MASTER’S STORES There were mice, mice dancing in the rice in the store, in the store There were mice, mice dancing in the rice in the store, in the quarter master’s store! My eyes are dim I cannot see, I have not brought my specs with me, I have not brought my specs with me! There was bread, bread hard as a lump of lead in the store, in the store There was bread, bread hard as a lump of lead in the store, in the quarter master’s store My eyes are dim I cannot see, I have not brought my specs with me, ………. There were rats, rats big as pussy cats in the store, in the store There were rats, rats big as pussy cats in the store, in the quarter master’s store My eyes are dim I cannot see, I have not brought my specs with me, I have not brought my specs with me! IF YOU WANT TO BE A PIRATE If you want to be a pirate scrub the deck, swish swish! If you want to be a pirate scrub the deck, swish swish If you want to be a pirate, really want to be a pirate If you want to be a pirate scrub the deck! Swish swish!

If you want to be a pirate walk the plank, stomp stomp! If you want to be a pirate walk the plank, stomp stomp If you want to be a pirate, really want to be pirate If you want to be a pirate walk the plank, stomp stomp!

If you want to be a pirate dig for treasure, dig dig! If you want to be a pirate dig for treasure, dig dig If you want to be a pirate, really want to be a pirate If you want to be a pirate dig for treasure, dig dig!

If you want to be pirate shout ‘Ahoy’ - ‘Ahoy!’ If you want to be pirate shout ‘Ahoy’ - ‘Ahoy!’ If you want to be pirate shout, really want to be a pirate If you want to be pirate shout ‘Ahoy’ - ‘Ahoy!’

Pirate Corners!

Walk the Plank! Pirate Fancy Dress night!

Create your own pirate island!

Design a treasure map! Don’t forget to addX where the treasure is buried!!

Pirate & pirate’s parrot finger puppets!

Why not make a pirate themed Bingo game, like the one below. Make a selection of different bingo boards - there are lots of pirate images and clipart on the internet. Don’t forget to make a master set of ‘call-out’ cards for a Leader to show the Squirrels and use counters or cardboard circles to cover the pictures or score them out with crayons or bingo markers!

Great pirate ideas from Activity Village

Activity Village has lots of fun downloadable activities BUT there is now a Membership fee of approx. £14.40 for a 12-month period. New ideas are constantly being added covering all sorts of themes and topics – everything from festivals and celebrations, animals, emotions, countries around the world!! And a great NEW range of pirate themed activities!!

www.activityvillage.co.uk