Read Across America Day - Dr. Seuss' Birthday

Today celebrates Dr. Seuss' birthday... what did/will you do to celebrate? I have a whole plateful of activities planned for my preschoolers... perhaps you could find a way to use some of these in your home/classroom?!

Waxman, Laura Hamilton.
Dr. Seuss.
December 2009.
Lerner Publications.
Review copy provided courtesy of publisher.

This is the first Dr. Seuss biography I've come across, but I'm sure there are several (or more) out there! This biography in particular specifically features Dr. Seuss as an artist, cartoonist, children's book writer, military man and "superstar."

The book is ideal for middle-age to older children, as the text is somewhat lengthy. However, there is so much information packed within, that the book can virtually be used with all children, if you just pick and pull the age-appropriate materials! Coupled with the photographs and illustrations, I'd say this is a wonderful book if you'd like to teach your child(ren) more about Dr. Seuss as a writer (and person), rather than just focusing on all of his books.

Learning/Reading Activities (that my preschoolers participated in today):

• Yesterday, we created Cat in the Hat hats to wear today. I found the directions for those here.
• We started out our day with breakfast - green eggs and ham style, of course!
  
• Read Ten Apples Up On Top and then create your own family/classroom edition of the book. The page we used can be downloaded here. The curriculum at my preschool is High/Scope... meaning we encourage creativity on the kids' part (discouraging children from imitating an adult's sample). I added head shots of all my kids on this page and then put out a bunch of materials (stamps, apple cutouts, markers, crayons, paper scraps) and let them "have at it"... after we had a discussion about how many apples they had "up on top" to be sure that everyone had a plan! All of the pages will be bound together and added to our classroom library.
• For Gross Motor activity time, we read Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now! and then we played "How Will We Go?" Each child was given a turn as "leader" and given the opportunity to decide how the class would "go" as we marched around the classroom and building. We flew, waddled like a penguin, galloped like a horse, and hopped like a frog, to name a few! The kids loved this!
  
• This afternoon, we watched Horton Hears a Who as a special surprise for the kids. Although their attention spans started to wane, I still think they found it enjoyable and relaxing.
• I was hoping to use this really neat Cat in the Hat glyph, but we just didn't have enough time. However, maybe you can enjoy it with your child(ren).
  

If you're interested in finding out more information about any of the books reviewed or if you'd like to purchase the books, click the cover image for a link to Amazon.com. I am an Amazon Affiliate, so any purchases you make after clicking these images will result in my receiving a small percentage of the sale price!