Set sail on an imaginative adventure this summer by having kids create this pirate handprint craft! They can turn their own handprint into a swashbuckling buccaneer, complete with a bandana, eye patch, and a big pirate beard.
Kids will love bringing their pirate to life, especially when they see their handprint transformed into a salty character. Hoist the sails, then explore even more fun handprint crafts for kids that keep little hands busy and creative.

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Pirate Handprint Craft
This playful pirate project invites kids to use their imaginations while also developing important skills. They’ll strengthen their fine motor control and sharpen their scissor skills. It’s a great activity for summer camps or for a bit of creative fun at home.
Every pirate deserves a look all their own, and kids can decide just how bold their buccaneer should be. Will the beard be fiery red or jet black?
What color will they choose for their bandana? Let them lead the design and show off their style. This project is sure to bring some high seas excitement to your day.
Use our free printable template to add the finishing touches like a hat and eye patch to the handprint pirate! It’s a fun way to spend a summer afternoon making a keepsake that’s both creative and cute!
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Supplies
- Colored cardstock or construction paper
- Scissors
- Glue
- Paint
- Paintbrush
- Marker
- Ruler
- Pirate Template (click the “click here to get your freebies” image at the end of the post)
Directions
Start by downloading and printing the template. Once the template is printed, gather the materials for this fun activity. Get those scissors ready, and let’s help the kids bring this pirate to life!

Start by tracing your child’s hand on skin-toned cardstock. This will be the base of your pirate! Cut it out once traced. Next, use brown paint to color just the fingers and the top half of the palm. This will be the pirate’s beard.

Now, position the handprint with the fingers pointed down. Grab the eye and glue it to the upper part of the handprint on one side.

Next, glue the eye patch right across from the opposite eye.

Using a ruler and a black marker, draw the strap of the eye patch across the pirate’s face.

Time to give your pirate some personality! Use a pink marker to draw on the nose.

Use a black marker to draw a smile on the pirate’s face, just below the eye and eye patch. This adds a friendly expression and completes the pirate’s face.

Glue the bandana piece just above the eyes. This gives your pirate a bold and classic pirate look.

Apply glue to the back of the black pirate hat and carefully place it on top of the bandana, lining it up with the curve of the head. Make sure the red bandana peeks out from underneath; it adds that perfect pop of pirate style!

Now it’s time for the finishing touch: the pirate’s skull emblem! Glue the skull to the center of the hat, right above the bandana. This little piece is what gives your pirate its official badge of swashbuckling style.

Don’t you just love how this handprint pirate turned out? It’s cute, easy, and perfect for preschool or kindergarten craft time. Be sure to check out some of our other fun pirate crafts for kids while you’re here. They make the perfect companion to this crafty adventure!

Easy Printable Pirate Photo Craft
Summer Books For Kids
How To Catch A Mermaid is the summer version of the classic “How To Catch” series! It’s perfect for mermaid fans and summer lovers alike!
Gorilla Loves Vanilla is all about, you guessed it – ice cream! This silly book will have kids laughing and asking for you to read it again and again.
Goodnight Pirate is a fun bedtime book to read to kids all summer long! They’ll love the illustrations, story, and rhyming words.

Fun Summer Crafts To Do At Home
Mermaid Popsicle Stick Craft – Make a splash with this magical mermaid when kids turn ordinary popsicle sticks into a friend that lives under the sea. Your little artists will use paint, colorful paper, scissors, glue, and our free template to make their enchanting underwater masterpiece.

Seagull Paper Plate Craft – Kids can transform a simple paper plate into a beachy bird with the help of our free template. After some cutting and gluing fun, they’ll flap into a world created by their imagination to make their seagull take flight!
DIY Pirate Ship Craft For Kids
Pirate Parrot Craft – Ahoy, matey! Set sail on a creative adventure by having kids make their own pirate parrot! This colorful little guy is dressed up like a pirate with an eye patch and pirate hat! Just grab our free template and a few supplies so your kids’ pirate parrot can take flight!
Summer Gnome Craft – Kids will love dressing up their gnomes in bright swimwear and getting them ready for fun in the sun. Don’t forget to add a beach ball for the ultimate summer vibes! Just download the free template and grab a few supplies to let the fun in the sun begin!
Summer Activity Printables
Set sail on a swashbuckling adventure with these pirate tracing worksheets! Kids will love following the dotted lines to treasure maps, pirate flags, and practicing forming the letter Pp all while building fine motor skills and pencil control.
It’s a fun way to sneak in some learning while pretending to be a pirate in search of gold. These playful pages will keep little hands busy and imaginations sailing either at home or in the classroom. Grab the free printables then yo-ho-ho and off we go!

These fabulous flamingo worksheets will help kids practice the letter Ff, snip and glue with flair, and discover fun facts about these fancy pink birds.
Grab these pages to bring a splash of sunshine and learning to any day. Kids will follow the letter Ff out of the maze, cut and paste labels on a flamingo, and perfect writing the letter f and their new vocabulary word, flamingo. It’s a bright and cheerful way to build skills and explore flamingos this summer!
Scoop up some summer fun with these ice cream matching game printables! Kids will love playing this game to find tasty matching pairs while working on visual memory, taking turns, and concentration. Just print, cut, and play!
The goal is to collect the most ice creams by remembering where the matching cards are hiding. Whether it’s a rainy day or a sunny afternoon, this sweet game is a boredom buster that doubles as a brain booster.

Use this Summer 5 Senses book for kids to explore all the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures that make summer so exciting. There’s space to draw or write their own experiences, and it’s a playful way to boost observation and early writing skills. Just print and grab some crayons to get started!
Share With Us
Did you make this activity with your kids or students? We’d love to feature them on our social media!
For a chance to have your child’s project featured, simply snap a picture of the completed project and post it to our Facebook page, email it to us directly by clicking here, or use #simpleeverydaymom on your social media!

Pirate Handprint Craft
Materials
- Colored cardstock or construction paper
- Scissors
- Glue
- Paint
- Paintbrush
- Marker
- Ruler
- Pirate Template
Instructions
- Download the template, print it, and cut out the pieces you need.
- Trace your child’s hand on paper, cut it out, and paint the fingers and a small part of the upper palm. This will be the pirate's beard.
- Once dry, position the handprint with the fingers down and glue the paper eye onto the upper section of the handprint, on one side.
- Then glue the eye patch on the other side, opposite the eye.
- Use a black marker to draw the eye patch strap across the face.
- Next, draw a simple smile using a black marker just below the eyes.
- Glue the bandana piece above the eyes.
- Grab the pirate hat and glue it above the bandana.
- Take the skull piece and glue it to the center of the pirate hat.
Free Pirate Handprint Craft Template


Sam is the crafter and founder of Simple Everyday Mom. She has been featured in Oprah Mag, Good Housekeeping, The Spruce Crafts, Country Living, The Bump and more. Read more.
Twila
Saturday 10th of May 2025
Interested in the free template.
Kamille - Community Support Assistant
Saturday 10th of May 2025
Hi! All you need to do is enter your email in the form at the end of this post to have the confirmation link sent to you. Or if you’re already a subscriber, you just need to enter your email in the form at the end of the post and it’ll automatically redirect you to the download page ◡̈
Blanca Leyva
Tuesday 1st of August 2023
How do I get this template?
Sam
Wednesday 2nd of August 2023
Since you’re already an email subscriber, all you need to do is enter your email in the form at the end of any post and it’ll automatically redirect you to the download page 🙂
Liz Falls
Sunday 18th of June 2023
Next week - June 26th-June 30th is Pirate Week at Summer Camp. This craft will be perfect to start the week! Pirate Week is my students' favorite week at camp!!!!!
Carrie Sova
Tuesday 28th of February 2023
I would like access to the template. Thanks!
Sam
Tuesday 28th of February 2023
Of course! All you need to do is enter your email in the form at the end of this post to have the link sent to you 🙂
Charlotte Fielding
Wednesday 15th of February 2023
yes please - looks great
Sam
Thursday 16th of February 2023
Since you’re already an email subscriber, all you need to do is enter your email in the form at the end of any post and it’ll automatically redirect you to the download page 🙂