Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss - March 2

Happy Birthday Theodor Seuss Geisel, March 2, 1904

The anniversary of Dr. Seuss's birthday is widely celebrated all around the country in schools, bookstores, and libraries. The largest event is Read Across America, sponsored by National Education Association every year on Dr. Seuss's birthday to motivate children and families to read. The NEA encourages communities to organize local events to celebrate and bring children together. There will be events all week long so search your local newspapers and online for locations near you. Also, check the links below to find activities you can use at your own homes.

Do you need an excuse to have birthday cake and ice cream? Last year, we baked and decorated a cake to celebrate Dr. Seuss's birthday. We sang, blew out candles, and ate the cake while reading Cat in the Hat. Earlier in the day we made our own "Cat in the Hat" hats out of construction paper.I couldn't find the exact link to the pattern I used for the hat in the picture. However, click here for a pattern and another. The picture at the right reminded me of another fun project that we did after reading The Foot Book. In the background, you may see footprints made out of construction paper. We traced our feet in different colors and taped them on the floor and going up the steps. The kids loved walking and jumping on the footprints.

There is so much to love about Dr. Seuss; the rhymes, the illustrations, the hidden themes and the characters. Dr. Seuss has invented many unique characters. Some characters play large parts in the stories like Cat in the Hat and The Lorax. Some characters are just mentioned quickly like the Wasket in the basket, the Nupboards in the cupboards or the Zizzer Zazzer Zuzz. I came up with a list, in no particular order, of my favorite characters; Cat in the Hat (of course), The Lorax, Horton (Horton Hatches the Egg, Horton Hears a Who), Mr. Sneelock (If I Ran the Circus), Mr. Brown (Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?), The Sneetches, Thidwick the Big Hearted Moose, Thing 1 & Thing 2, Sam I am, any characters from Wocket in my Pocket or Dr. Seuss's ABC! I found a great list of the characters and their corresponding books on another website.  Make a list of your favorites with your family or students.

In honor of Dr. Seuss this March 2nd I thought it would be fun to change your Facebook status to mention your favorite character. I might change mine to say, "I wish I were Mr. Sneelock." or "If I could only be as gracious as Thidwick the Moose." or simply "Sneetches!" Pass this on to all you friends and family and we will see how far it goes!

Links:

1. Read Across America Website

2. Read Across America Activity Guide - 2005 Version, 2009 Version - Packed Full of Stuff!

3. Seussville Read Across America info - Printable Certificates, etc.

3. Seussville - The Official Website of Dr. Seuss

4. Seussville Games

5. Green Eggs and Ham - YouTube

6. The Lorax - Google Video

7. Dr. Seuss's ABC - YouTube