Grab some of my favorite mermaid and pirate books for your next pirate theme! Students love the ocean and have a fascination with mermaids and pirates, so capitalize on that and use it for your theme. This is a fun theme for a spring or summer theme in conjunction with a study about ocean animals or shells.
Grab the Pirates Math and Literacy Centers (coming soon), the All About Shells Science Unit, and the Ocean Crafts set.
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Pirate Books
A great pirate books to encourage readers to explore and learn about pirates. It has simple text and bright pictures to keep young children captivated and engaged.
The little boy jumps onto the pirate ship, and soon, he knows all the important skills needed to be a pirate. Your students will love this silly tale and be on the lookout for a pirate ship to join.
Pete the Cat and the Treasure Map
Pete the Cat is the captain of a pirate ship. The crew finds a treasure map, and off they go on an adventure. They were after treasure but found a sea monster instead.
Danny is thinking about hopping on a pirate ship, but his mother tells him how she would battle the sea to find him. It is a good story to reassure a worried child about their mother’s love.
Pirate Jack is getting dressed and wants to wear every color of the rainbow! This could also be used for a clothing theme or to help students practice basic self-help skills.
The characters turn their bedroom objects into pirate treasures as they prepare for their nap. A fun book about imagination that would be great to read before naptime.
Join Pirate Pete as he looks for treasure on many different islands. Students will love to guess where he is going to land next and what trouble he may encounter.
A silly book about pirates and their love of underpants! Your classroom will be full of laughter, and your students will want to read it again and again. Keep reading for more pirate books.
Learn about sailing in this cute fiction picture book for young children. It is full of sailing vocabulary and an adventure on the sea.
Shiver Me Letters A Pirate ABC
Don’t make the crew walk the plank for a missing letter! Read the book and help them find all the letters of the alphabet.
There Was an Old Pirate Who Swallowed a Fish
A spin on the classic story of the old lady swallowing a fly butt his time with pirate goods. The old pirate makes his belly grow with each item he swallows…what will happen next?
We’re Going on a Treasure Hunt
Bright illustrations and rhyming text make this book fun for all ages during a pirate study. Join the crew on the treasure hunt of a lifetime!
Mermaid & Ocean Books
Join the kids while they try to catch a mermaid, but she has tricks up her sleeves that they didn’t think of. Another great title in the How to Catch series! Keep reading for more mermaid and pirate books.
Oona loves to search for treasure but usually finds mischief instead! It is a tale that will be a favorite with your readers, and it has beautiful illustrations.
A poem book about the fish and animals that live in the ocean. Little learners will love the bright colors and illustrations while they learn about creatures in the ocean.
Five Little Sharks Swimming in the Sea
An underwater spin on the monkeys jumping in the bed but with sharks. They are mischievous and accident-prone, ending up at the doctor just like the monkeys.
Show your students how they can experience the ocean with all five senses in this fun book about a day at the beach. Keep reading for more ocean and pirate books.
A rhyming book to see and meet many different kinds of fish in the sea. Young children will delight in the bright colors and a new fish friend on each page.
Read about all the wonderful things the beach has to offer, like sunshine, sand, shells, and more. This is a good book to read if students haven’t been to the beach because it shares so many aspects of the ocean.
The Three Little Fish and the Big Bad Shark
Another ocean spin on a classic children’s story that your students will love. Will the little fish let the shark in? Read the story to find out how it ends.
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Shell!
The old lady is at it again! This time, she swallows things she finds at the beach. What will she spit out at the end?
Way Down Deep in the Deep Blue Sea
A fun rhyming book about what you may find way down deep in the sea. Keep reading for more pirate books.
Nonfiction Titles for Pirate Books
The Under the Sea series from Pebble books are great for little learners. They are full of simple vocabulary, bright pictures, and knowledge to share with your learners. Other titles include: Sea Turtles, Barracudas, Whales, Octopuses, Walruses, Crabs, Jellyfish, and Sea Snakes.
Learn about the characteristics and interesting facts about dolphins.
A book full of facts about shells written for young children to learn and explore. A good tool for a pirate, shell, beach, or ocean theme.
A beautifully illustrated nonfiction book about what lives in shells. There are several animals that make their home in a shell.
These books are going to enrich your pirate theme to build background knowledge, introduce new vocabulary, and immerse your little learners in a pirate/ocean world. I love to have fiction and nonfiction titles available to students, as well as some about other topics that relate.
Love these pirate books? Pin this image.
For more of my favorite books, check out my themed Book List Blog Series that features themed book lists to accompany your lessons and activities! These are sure to keep your library shelves full! If there is a book list for a theme you need, just let us know so we can create it for you!
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I’m Jackie, your go-to girl for early childhood inspiration and research-based curriculum.
