31 Days of Homeschooling Using Disney Parks: Pirates of the Caribbean

One of my favorite rides at Magic Kingdom is the Pirates of the Caribbean.  Just like Haunted Mansion is Logan’s go to ride, I insist on this one.  Now, Logan is not a fan of the drop in the beginning.  When we first started going to the parks with our annual passes, we certainly had to coax Logan on the ride.  One day, I had an epiphany.  Everyone picks one ride that we are guaranteed to ride while we are there.  Not necessarily all of us as you will discover in the Thunder/Splash Mountain posts later in the month.

Since we learn the real life facts about each ride, we took some time to  learn all about real life pirates that ran a muck in the Caribbean during colonial times.  We have the fantastic Gasparilla festivities in Tampa Bay as an additional augmentation to our Disney studies.  There is no shortage of pirate learning opportunities in Central Florida. Treasure Island  is a great read a loud during our pirate unit. 

We watched the Pirates of the Caribbean 4 Movie Set comparing it to the ride as well as what we knew about real life pirates.  The Smithsonian Channel has a phenomenal documentary about the truths and myths behind the movies.  There are a few other documentaries available on Amazon Instant Video that would be useful for comparison. 

• Pirates: Dead Men Tell Their Tales – The True Story of the Pirates of the Caribbean, A Documentary
• The Real Pirate Of The Caribbean
• The Real Story Season 3 [HD]

Another aspect that we talk about is how the iconic ride was the basis for the movies.  The ride did not always have Blackbeard in the fog and Captain Jack in various parts.  It’s a great discussion about how the parks need to evolve to keep people coming back.  If nothing ever changed then after a few visits , no one would want to come back.  It’s a great lesson on how as a business Walt Disney World has to always be looking toward the future. Sometimes the changes they make are popular while sometimes they are not. Alas, a fact that a lot of people forget is that Walt Disney World is a business. 

The links in this post are affiliate links.  By clicking on them to purchase, you help fund our annual passes to Walt Disney World.  Some months you also fund Mickey bars.  My family really appreciates it.