Thursday, February 23, 2012

Dr Suess's Birthday




 http://www.lucylearns.com/dr-seuss-picture.html
     After visiting Springfield Ma. (Dr. Suess Monuments) this past weekend, I figured I'd share some activities, and recipes to help remember this great children's author!
One way to celebrate Dr. Suess's Birthday is to take a trip to Suessville with your kids via online (link below)!
http://www.seussville.com/
Theodor Geisel, Dr. Seuss, was born on March 2, 1904. 

I've also listed a variety of activities to have fun with your children.  Happy Birthday Dr. Suess!

Activities


THE FOOT BOOK

Trace the children's feet and put them aside so the kids can try to find their own feet each day. Use different colored paper to mix it up a bit...
A Paper Wall can be constructed by having the kids step into different colored paints and have them walk across a piece of  paper to display on a classroom bulletin board.

ARE YOU MY MOTHER?
Have the children search through magazines to find pictures of mothers and their children. 
Cut the pictures out and form a collage or use this activity for children to make cards for their own mothers or caregivers.

http://www.brighthub.com/education/early-childhood/articles/44133.aspx
THE CAT IN THE HAT – A Balancing Act
Dr. Seuss created some incredible characters, but none is as famous as the Cat in the Hat. The Cat in the Hat always seems to be balancing things. Give your preschoolers a chance to learn all about balancing items on top of each other. Give each child a small paper bag full of an identical group of items, such as a block, a spoon, a crayon, a marble, a plastic straw, and a bowl. Have each child try to make a tower with all of the items, balancing them in the easiest way possible. After this activity, discuss with children how the process went. Which items balanced most easily on top? Which items did they decide to put on the bottom? Why?

SNACKS
http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/dr_seuss_recipes.htm
Cat in The Hat Snack

Make the Cat’s Hat for a fun snack. All you need is a few Ritz crackers, gummy lifesavers (preferably in white/clear and red) and a little vanilla frosting. Put the Ritz cracker on a plate. Use a little bit of vanilla frosting to glue the first lifesaver on the cracker. “Glue” more lifesavers on top of the first one alternating between red and white.

Wiggly Fish

This snack was inspired by “One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish”. Prepare several different colors of Jello according to package directions and pour each flavor into a shallow pan. Use a fish shaped cookie cutter to cut the Jello into fish shapes. (If you don’t have a fish shaped cookie cutter you could also just cut fish shapes with a knife.) You can also add small pieces of fruit to the Jello mixture before it cools.

Below is a article Paula Deen wrote about the Great Dr. Suess.  So well written...
http://www.pauladeen.com/Feature_Articles/view/happy_birthday_dr._seuss
Everyone grows up with Dr. Seuss. His timeless books rest on bookshelves in millions of homes around the world. They are inscribed by loved ones, collected and passed on through the generations. Every reader has a favorite. Maybe it’s his breakthrough work, The Cat in the Hat, or One Fish, Two Fish. But can you guess the best-selling Seuss book of all time? Would you, could you?
That’s right, Green Eggs and Ham.
And to think it all started as a $50 bet.
Dr. Seuss, born Theodor “Ted” Seuss Geisel on March 2, 1904 in Springfield, Mass., accepted a challenge from a friend in publishing to write a children’s book using 50 words or less. Seuss later joked that he never got the payment, but after receiving seven honorary doctorates, two Academy Awards, two Emmys, three Caldecott Honor Awards, a Peabody, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and a little thing called the Pulitzer Prize, we doubt he held a grudge.
Dr. Seuss credits his mother for the rhythmic absurdities found in all his children’s books. When working in her father’s bakery, she would memorize the names of the pies on special that day and repeat them in a singsong voice to her customers. His mother even sang the specials to herself at night if she had trouble sleeping.
If you’ve ever found yourself lying in bed trying to push the Sam-I-ams from your head, you aren’t alone. The musical quality of Dr. Seuss’s writing wriggles its way into our thoughts and eventually into our hearts.
But when your arguments with a child over what to eat start to sound as nonsensical and repetitious as Green Eggs and Ham, it’s time for a new approach. Kids ask for the book over and over again (and again, and again) because it’s playful and fun. Sure, they are learning through the process, but telling them would steal away the joy. The same goes for food. Creative meals can go a long way in getting picky eaters to dig in rather than wrinkle up their tiny noses. Paula’s always looking for new ways to get her grandson, Jack, excited about mealtime, so she brewed up a Dr. Seuss-inspired recipe she calls Green Eggs and Ham Cups.
Sadly, the beloved Dr. Seuss passed away in 1991 at the age of 87. But the 44 children’s books he wrote and illustrated leave a lasting legacy for all readers, young and old. This month, celebrate Dr. Seuss’s birthday by seeing how a little imagination can light up a child’s world.
“Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the things you can think up if only you try!” –Dr. Seuss

Green Eggs and Ham Cups

Ingredients:

8 slices deli ham, thinly sliced

1 slice sandwich bread, divided into 4 pieces

4 eggs

1 cup frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

¼ cup White Cheddar cheese

4 slices toast

4 slices bacon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400ºF

Lightly coat 4 cups in a muffin tin with cooking spray. Fit two of the ham slices into each cup (ham ends will be above cup edges). Divide bread among cups. In a blender, combine eggs, spinach, salt and pepper and blend. Divide mixture among cups. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake on middle oven rack until egg is cooked. Approximately 15-20 minutes. When warm enough to handle, remove the cups from the muffin tins and serve with a slice of toast and crispy bacon.

Servings: 4

Prep Time: 10 min

Cook Time: 15-20 min

Difficulty: Easy

Another great link:
http://www.usd267.k12.ks.us/TL%20Student%20Pages/readacrossamerica.html









3 comments:

  1. Thanks so much, have had a lot of fun on your blog today. And some great links for activities, thanks so much.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for the positive comments! Glad you liked it.

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  3. What a great post! My little boy just started reading his first words, so Suess's Hop on Pop is our current favorite. Thanks for all the ideas, we are definitely trying the hats!

    Jessica
    www.dinnerwiththeshivers.com

    ReplyDelete

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