Navigating Piracy

A project-based unit on the Whydah Gally, the 1717 slave-ship-turned-pirate-ship wrecked off Cape Cod

5 weeks · July 6 – Aug 6, 2026 · Mon–Thu 13 sessions + 3 field trips + Synthesis Studio + 2 build days + public Showcase Middle school · LEAP4Ed, Salem MA Facilitator: Max Howe (GIS/cartography)

Driving question

“Why would a person choose piracy in 1717, and how would they want you to tell their story?”

The five-week voyage

1 · Maps & PowerJul 6–9

How do people use maps and navigation to exercise power, in 1717 and today?

2 · The Triangle TradeJul 13–16

What do Atlantic trade routes tell us about who benefits and who suffers, then and now? (Museum trip Wed · kayaking Thu)

3 · Life as a PirateJul 20–23

How does geography shape the choices people can make, from 1717 to modern chokepoints? (The Wreck Wed · Boston Harbor trip Thu)

4 · Modern OceansJul 27–30

Whose stories get mapped, and whose get buried, across time?

5 · Synthesis & ShowcaseAug 3–6

Revisit the unit as your chosen perspective (in-class Synthesis Studio), build the final project from the Journal, and present it publicly.

How students show their learning

Voyage Journal → Final project → Public Showcase

One Journal entry per session: 16+ artifacts (maps, writing, analysis cards, sketches) by Week 5.
A final project built from the Journal: pick a historical perspective and one of 12 formats (story map, performance, graphic novel, ballad, exhibit, flip book…), citing 3–4 Journal entries.
The Showcase (Thu Aug 6) is the public reveal: final projects presented and Voyage Journals displayed for families, faculty, and museum partners.

Massachusetts standards

HSS Practice Standards 1–7 (2018 Framework): inquiry, sourcing, point of view, evidence-based argument, informed action.
Literacy in History/Social Science (2017): RH.6–8 reading & WHST.6–8 writing with primary sources.
Grade 8 ELA anchors: RI.8.1/6/9, W.8.3/7, SL.8.4.

Content connects to the Grade 5 U.S. History course and high-school U.S. History I.

Access for every learner

UDL by design: multiple ways in (maps, images, a 3D game) and multiple ways to show it (the 12-format menu).
English learners: visual-first entry, pre-screened excerpts, explicit vocabulary, sentence frames.
Students with disabilities: predictable 90-min routine, tactile builds, physical-or-digital Journal, drop-in help.

Field trips (three confirmed)

FT1 (Wed Jul 15): rotation between Real Pirates Salem (Whydah artifacts) and Salem Maritime NHS (the Friendship + Derby Wharf). Sections swap over lunch.

FT2 (Thu Jul 16): kayaking, the on-the-water "life at sea" day.

FT3 (Thu Jul 23): Georges Island / Boston Harbor Islands, the harbor gateway to the city where the Whydah's story ended. No 2nd museum trip; Mon Aug 3 is the in-class Synthesis Studio.

Partnership with Real Pirates Salem Museum · research grounded in the Whydah record (Kinkor, Rediker, Woodard, Expedition Whydah) whydah-dashboard.html