ABC Book

Language Arts: Alphabet
After you read the book, go back through and think of words that start with each letter. (Of course, you may not make it As you read the book have children think of other words that start with that letter.

ABC Activities
1. Shout out a letter and see if your student can find something around the house that starts with that letter.
2. Make an ABC book. Write a letter on each page and cut things out of magazines to illustrate each letter. For example, for A you could have an apple and alligator.
3. For your older student, work on putting things in alphabetical order. You could even give him your stack of Dr. Seuss (or library) books and ask him to put them in alphabetical order.

Language Arts: Handwriting
Practice drawing letters. If your student isn't writing yet, have him trace letters with a highlighter. You can also let student make letter drawings in whipped cream, shaving cream, or rice.

Art: Animal Drawing
Dr. Seuss said that he wasn't a very good artist, so he made up a lot of the animals (then they could look however he wanted them to!). Look at the illustrations together paying special attention to his outlandish animals. Be sure to check out the Fiffer-feffer-feff, the Quacking Quackeroo, and the Zizzer Zazzer Zuzz. Encourage your student to create an imaginary animal. Have her draw it and name it. (Candace's girls made a Guber Gabber Gubb, a Geem, and a Keeka Kooka). Remind your student that there is no WRONG way to do this and have fun!

Activity Card

The Cat in the Hat

Cat in the Hat Shape Book by Breezy Tulip

Science: Rain and the Water Cycle
Why does it rain? Where does the rain come from? Tell your student that rain is a part of the water cycle. The sun pulls water into the sky to form clouds (evaporation). When the clouds get too full, they let go of the water, making rain (precipitation). Use the following coloring sheets to teach this concept in depth.

Water Cycle Coloring Sheet 1 Water Cycle
Water Cycle Coloring Sheet 2 Evaporation
Water Cycle Coloring Sheet 3 Condensation
Water Cycle Coloring Sheet 4 Precipitation
Water Cycle Coloring Sheet 5 Collection

Language Arts: Listmaking
Discuss rainy days, and fun things you can do on a rainy day at your own house.

Social Studies: Stranger Safety
Discuss with your student what he should do if a stranger knocks on the door. Also, discuss why it is important to keep doors locked. This may be a good time to discuss when/how to call 9-1-1 in case of an emergency.

Character: Telling the Truth
Discuss this last question in the book-- "What would you do if your mother asked you?". What should Sally and her brother tell their mother? (the truth!) Talk to your student about the importance of always telling you the truth.
Bible Verses to Study
Proverbs 12:22
Proverbs 13:5
I Peter 2:12

P.E.: Balance
For a fun balancing exercise, pick something for your child to try to balance on his/her head (just like the cat in the book).

Just For Fun

Make Gummy Lifesaver Hats!
Use a vanilla wafer or Ritz cracker for the bottom, then use red Gummy Savers and white frosting to make a stacked ring hat.

Make a Cat in the Hat (from Hubbard's Cupboard)
Printable Hat
Printable Head and Face

Make a Counting Booklet
Printable Booklet (first 3 pages)
Printable Booklet (Cover and last pages)

Hat Game
Find a large hat and put in various small items. Blindfold the child and have them reach in, touch an object and guess what it is without looking.

Links
Cat in the Hat Maze
Cat in the Hat Connect the Dots
Cat in the Hat Addition
Cat in the Hat Birthday Cake Recipe
ABC Game (on-line)
Concentration Game (on-line)
Find the Funny Fish Game (on-line)
Make a Cat in the Hat Hat
Cats in Hats mini book to make (find more printable books at Hubbard's Cupboard)

The Foot Book

PE: Play Musical Feet
Have your child trace his/her feet and cut out several copies form construction paper, place all around floor and put on music, when the music stops everyone must have their feet on two of the feet on the floor.

Math: Direction
Teach your child right and left. Put an R on your child's right foot and an L on his left. Re-read the story. Every time you read the words right or left, have your kick the foot (or point to the foot) that coordinates with the reading.

Language Arts: Opposites
This book is full of opposites! Point some of them out to your student up/down, high/low, near/far, etc. After you finish reading, call out some words and see if your student can give you the opposite. You may even want to make a written list. Here are some words to get you started-- up/down, high/low, near/far, left/right, light/dark, sun/moon, here/there, black/white, yes/no, man/woman, boy/girl, open/close, happy/sad, old/new, fat/thin, wet/dry...If you need more (or more challenging word for an older student), find a huge list at ABCteach.com

Just For Fun
Wet Foot, Dry Foot

Fox in Socks

Language Arts: Alliteration
Alliteration is the repetition of a sound at the beginning of two or more neighboring words (as in wild and woolly or a babbling brook). Can your student find examples of alliteration in this book? (I hope so! There's a ton!) When you have an excessive amount of alliteration, you have a tongue twister. Encourage your older student to write some tongue twisters just for fun! Try reading them over and over as quick as you can.

Life Skill: Matching Socks
Teach your child how to match and fold socks.

Language Arts: Go-along Book
Read another tongue-twisting tale by Dr. Seuss, Oh Say Can You Say

Just For Fun
Play Fox in Socks Matching Game On-line
Like Sue, sew socks (make a puppet)

Gerald McBoing Boing

Language Arts: Onomatopoeia
Onomatopoeia is defined as the naming of a thing or action by imitation of natural sounds (as "buzz" or "hiss"). It is a technique often used in poetry, but many writers also include it in short stories (we could simply call onomatopoetic words-- sound effects). What words in Gerald McBoing Boing are examples of Onomatopoeia? Have fun looking through the text with your student and finding these words. Can your student think of other words that have the same effect? Encourage your older student to use onomatopoetic words when he writes poems or short stories.

Social Studies: Teasing/Making Fun of Others
How does your student feel about the way Gerald's school mates reacted toward him? Sometimes, it's easy to make fun of someone who's different, but it isn't kind. Ephesians 4:32 tells us to be kind to one another. Would your student like it if someone made fun of him? Discuss what he should do if he's made fun of. Also discuss what he should do if he sees a group of people picking on someone because they are different.

Social Studies: Talents and Gifts
Everyone has been gifted by God with special talents or abilities. What was Gerald's talent? Does your student know what his talents and abilities are? Give thanks to God for gifting your student and pray that He will show you how to cultivate that gift into something that can be used for His glory.

Science: Sounds
To further explore the concept of sound, get the book Sounds all Around (a read and find out science book).

Just For Fun
Gerald McBoing Boing Flip Book
Gerald McBoing Boing Maze
Gerald's Jam Session
Free Audio Version (go to week 05)

Green Eggs and Ham

Social Studies: Trying Something New!
What did Sam-I-am try to get the other guy to eat? The other guy was adamant that he didn't like Green Eggs and Ham, but he'd never even tried them! Discuss trying new things with your student. Decide on something new that you will try together (food, hobby, sport, or ?) and do that this week!

Cooking: Green Eggs and Ham
Drop a few drops of green food coloring into your scrambled eggs and serve some ham on the side! Enjoy!
Recipes

Language Arts: Rhyming Words
Discuss rhyming words. Ask your child if two words rhyme, then let them make up silly or real words that rhyme with the word you give them. Example-- you say ham and they say sam, bam, zam.

You could also make a concentration game out of rhyming word cards. To make the cards, look through magazines with your student and cut out pictures. Try to find pictures of things that rhyme (rain/train...box/fox...truck/duck). Paste the pictures on index cards and use them to play memory (concentration). Store in a ziplock bag so that you can play it again later.

Just For Fun
Pin the Eggs on the Ham and Plate
Play Sam-I-Am Says on-line
Make Egg Carton Critters
Green Eggs and Ham Picture Scramble (on-line activity)

Horton Hatches the Egg

Character Study: Faithfulness
What is Horton's famous line? What does it mean to be faithful? A faithful person is one who is firm in keeping promises or in fulfilling duties. If a faithful person says she is going to clean her room, she does it. If a faithful person makes a commitment to feed and water the neighbor's cat while the neighbor is on vacation, he gets the job done. A faithful person keeps a promise even when it is not convenient. If a faithful person says she will play with her friend on Tuesday, then she keeps her promise, even if it means not getting to go with her brother to the circus.

Science: Elephants
There are three species of Elephants-- the African Bush Elephant, the African Forest Elephant, and the Asian Elephant which is also known as the Indian Elephant. Elephants are mammals and the largest land animals alive today. The elephant's pregnancy lasts 22 months (ahh!), and a baby elephant (a calf) is born weighing about 265 pounds. An elephant may live as long as 70 years, sometimes longer.

Enchanted Learning Elephant Print-out
Asian Elephant
African Elephant

Science: Eggs
You could hard boil an egg with your student. As you crack it, note the outer shell, inner shell (membrane�the thin white layer that is suppose to come off with the shell), the yolk, and the albumen (egg white). You may or may not want to mention to your student that the eggs we eat are not fertilized (do not have a baby chick growing inside).

Science: Incubation
Why did Horton have to sit on the egg? There are certain things that fertilized eggs need in order to develop into baby birds. Chicken eggs need to be kept warm, so chickens have to sit on their eggs; they also need turned three times each day, so the mother hen does this. This is done so that the baby won't stick to the shell.

If you're able (and willing!), get a chick-u-bator or an incubator and some fertilized chicken eggs. Make sure to keep the incubator at 100 degrees, to turn the eggs three times each day, to keep holes in the sides of the incubator open (for ventilation), and to keep the humidity set at between 5-60 percent.

Just For Fun
Read another story about this beloved elephant-- Horton Hears a Who

Seussville Storymaker
Horton's Who Hunt (on-line game)

The Lorax

This is a complete (includes all subjects) literature based unit study. Click the link below if you'd like to view it and pull some ideas for your Dr. Seuss Unit.

The Lorax

Maybe You Should Fly a Jet, Maybe You Should be a Vet

Language Arts: Author- Theo LeSeig
When Dr. Seuss let someone else illustrate his books he used the name Theo. Le Sieg. (LeSieg was a twist on his mother�s maiden name Geisel-spelled backwards). Have fun with your kids by spelling their names backwards and trying to say them. Let them autograph a drawing or short story with the new name.

Social Studies: Occupations
Discuss the different occupations mentioned throughout the book. Let your child pick an occupation they are interested in ("what do you want to be when you grow up?"). Explore more about this occupation.

My Many Colored Days

Art Project: Scratch Art "Many Colored Wax Drawing"

Supplies:
    Crayons
    White Cardstock
    Toothpicks (one for each student)
    Black Paint-- tempra or poster
    Thick paintbrush

Color the entire area of a piece of white cardstock different colored crayons (bright colors work best; try not to use black). Press down hard and make the colors bright. Then, paint over the coloring with thick black paint until it is completely covered. Let it dry. Using a toothpick, scratch a picture through the paint. The colors underneath the paint will show through. (adapted from www.seussville.com )

Poetry Writing: Mood Poem
Discuss the different moods that the different colors represent. If your student had to think of a color to describe herself, what color would it be and why? Here are some moods to choose from-- accepted, angry, confused, annoyed, energetic, happy, hungry, satisfied, smart, silly, cheerful, loved, surprised, sad, hopeful, mellow, disappointed, thankful, sleepy, irritated, hyper, grumpy, calm.

Try using the following form to write a poem

State a mood
Write two or three things the mood is not (two stated briefly, one stated as a comparison).
Switch to a statement of what the mood is.
State two or three more descriptions of the mood.

Example:
I'm excited
Not do a jig and kick up my heels
Not run around the house and scream hooray
Just glad to be alive
Enthusiastic about what the day will bring
Eager to explore God's world

Science and Art: Color Mixing
Supplies Needed: Food Coloring (red, blue, yellow), glass or glass jar, water
Tell your student that we have a special name for red, blue, and yellow. They are called primary colors. We can use the primary colors to make a group known as the secondary colors. Tell your student to mix two colors of their choice together in a glass with some water. What did they choose? Record the results. Try again with another combination. Record the results. Can your student figure out the last combination? You can use the prepared chart below to record your observations.
Prepared Color Mixing Chart

Game Idea: I Spy
Play "I Spy" with your child (I Spy Something Red...). Look around the room for various colored items and play many rounds using many different colors.

Language Arts: Go-along Book: Oh, The Thinks You Can Think!
After you read this book discuss the thinking about colors. "You can think about yellow or think about blue...You can think about red. You can think about pink...think of black water, think of white sky." Make lists of things that are yellow, blue, red, and pink. Also, as you read this book, encourage your student to actually answer the questions that Dr. Seuss asks.

Just for Fun
Many Colored Day Bookmark
Many Colored Wrapping Paper
Many Colored Cookies Recipe

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

Science: Fish
Learn more about fish.
Enchanted Learning Fish Print-Out
Supplemental Book: What's It Like to Be a Fish? by Wendy Pfeffer

Math: Counting
Use Goldfish Crackers as a manipulative. Enjoy counting them (you can even use them for story problems)! When you finish your math fun, eat your manipulatives!

Art/Craft: Painting
Mix some corn syrup with blue food coloring. Paint the mixture onto fish bowl shaped construction paper and glue on paper fish and plants. After the syrup has set (about 2 hours) cover with plastic wrap to cut down on the stickiness.

Language Arts/Art: Creative Thinking, Writing, and Drawing
Look at Dr. Seuss' drawings of animals. Ask your child, "what animal does this resemble?" On page 18 there is a Wump. It looks like a camel, but it has seven humps. Why did Dr. Seuss name it a Wump? (because he needed something to rhyme with hump!) Can you find other illustrations of rhyming names? Why did he call one a Zeep?
He has many other creations �like a Nook, a Zans (that can open cans), a Gox (that can box), a Ying (that can sing), a Yink (that likes to wink and drink pink ink). Help your student create an animal. Think of something special it can do, then help your student think up a name that rhymes with the animal's talent. (Examples-- a Grance (that can dance), a Zzar (in a car), a Zeed (that likes to read). A

Other Fun Activities
Play One Fish, Two Fish Concentration On-line

The Sneetches

Social Studies: Human Relationships- Prejudice
Discuss prejudice with your student. The star is a symbol of superiority. It's so silly to judge people by their outward appearance! What does the Bible say about this? Read I Samuel 16:7. Does God judge by the outward appearance? How should we decide whether or not we want to be friends with someone? Based on their looks? Based on whether or not they have nice things?

Math: Story Problems
1. Sylvester McBean charged $3 to put a star on a belly. How much did he make if he put stars on 35 Sneetches?
2. Later, McBean charged $10 to take stars off bellies. How much did he make if he took off 45 stars?
3. How much did McBean make total?

Langauge Arts: Go-along Book
Read and discuss You are Special by Max Lucado. How is God like the woodcarver? How are we like Punchinello? Why does this book remind your student of The Sneetches?

Just for Fun
If you have the ability and the time of year is right, have a bonfire complete with hotdogs and marshmallows to roast. Be sure to invite some friends or neighbors over to enjoy it (even if they don't have stars on their bellies!)!

Links
Sneetch Snacks!
Sneetch Belly Game (on-line)
Which one is Different? Printable
Which one is the Same? Printable
Sneech Ball Game Rules (4 players)

Ten Apples Up on Top

Math: Counting
Teach your young student to count to 10. If your student already knows how to do this, try teaching her to count by 10's to 100.

Math: Apple Cards
Use these Prepared Apple Cards for the following activities:

1. Match the card with the appropriate number of apples to the number (for example, match the card with four apples to the number four). You could even turn this into a memory/concentration game with your student.

2. Use the cards for addition problems. For example, give your student the card with two apples and the card with three apples, then ask her to add them together and give you the card with the correct number`-- the 5.

3. Have your student put the cards in order 1-10.

Social Studies: Human Relationships-- Bragging/Showing Off
The characters in this book were showing off-- trying to out-do one another. Discuss why showing off (or bragging) is a bad idea.

Language Arts: Prepositions
Does your young student understand words indicating spatial relationships? What does "up on" mean? Play a simple game with your student giving him spatial commands to make sure he understands words such as under, on, in, out of, between, beside, below, above, around, etc. "Put your doll on your bed...put your doll under your bed...put your doll on top of your head...put your doll between the bears..." Of course, you could do this exercise with an apple if you have one on hand.

The Tooth Book

Science: Teeth
Ask your student if she knows why we have teeth. The primary function of teeth is to tear and chew food. For some animals, they also serve the purpose of fighting (for defense).

Enamel Experiment
Discuss tooth enamel with your student. Explain that enamel is the thin outer layer that protects the tooth pulp and never endings inside. It is important to keep the enamel healthy.

For this experiment you will need a raw egg, vinegar, and a glass.
Procedure:
Soak a raw egg in vinegar overnight. The acid will soften the shell just as acid in your mouth can cause a tooth to soften (to weaken and decay). In the morning, observe the egg. Discuss that this is similar to what happens to your teeth. The inside layers become vunderable (weaken and decay) when the enamel is eaten away by acid in the mouth. Once the enamel is gone, the pulp is exposed and a toothache occurs. It is important to keep teeth brushed so that the acids are kept under control and off the enamel.

Another similar experiment to conduct is Stains and Your Teeth. You will need the following:
egg shells

six containers
rootbeer
cola
tea

coffee

grape juice

water
Procedure:
Place a small amount of liquid in each container-- one container for rootbeer, one for cola, one for tea, etc. Label each container. Add some egg shells to each container. Set the containers on a table overnight. The next day, pour off the liquids, but save the egg shells and place them back in their empty containers. Compare the color of the egg shells from the different beakers. What happened to the egg shells? Why is it important to brush your teeth?

For more information on Teeth, see the lesson on Taking Care of Your Teeth in the HSS unit, I Am Not Sleepy...

Language Arts: Author- Theo LeSeig
When Dr. Seuss let someone else illustrate his books he used the name Theo. Le Sieg. (LeSieg was a twist on his mother�s maiden name Geisel-spelled backwards). Have fun with your kids by spelling their names backwards and trying to say them. Let them autograph a drawing or short story with the new name.

Math: Counting
Count your child's teeth!

Wacky Wednesday

Math: Calendar Skills
Learn the days of the week together.

Language Arts: Alliteration
Alliteration is the repetition of a sound at the beginning of two or more neighboring words such as Wacky Wednesday. Authors frequently use this technique for titles as Dr. Seuss did for this book. Have fun with your student by creating your own days of the week alliterations.
Examples-- Munching Monday, Terrific Tuesday, Wild Wednesday, etc.

Math: Counting-- Spot the Wackiness!
This book is a blast! On each two page spread, have your student find the wacky things. The text will usually tell you how many to spot ("I saw three, in the bathroom four!, then I counted eleven...").

Additional Information and Links

Mr. Brown Can HOO!

More Dr. Seuss Fun

World of Seuss Wordsearch

Even More Ideas for fun with Dr. Seuss books

Library Book List (by topic)
Elephants
Eggs
Teeth
Water Cycle (rain)
Alphabet Books
Fish
Sound

Other Dr. Seuss Books (mentioned in lessons)
Oh Say Can You Say?
Oh, The Thinks You Can Think
Horton Hears a Who

More Dr. Seuss Books (for your reading pleasure!)
Oh, The Places He Went (a book about the life of Dr. Seuss)
And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street (1938)
Bartholomew and the Oobleck (1959)
The Butter Battle Book (1984)
The Cat in the Hat Comes Back (1968)
Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are? (1973)
The Eye Book (1968)
The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins (1938)
Great Day For Up! (1974)
Hop on Pop (1963)
Hunches in Bunches (1982)
I Am Not Going To Get Up Today! (1987)
I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today (1969)
I Can Read With My Eyes Shut (1978)
I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew (1965)
If I Ran The Circus (1956)
If I Ran The Zoo (1950)
The King's Stilts (1939)
The Lorax (1971)
Marvin K. Mooney, Will You Please Go Now! (1972)
McElligot's Pool (1947)
Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? (1970)
Shape of Me and Other Stuff (1973)
There's a Wocket In My Pocket (1974)
Thidwick, The Big-Hearted Moose (1948)
Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories (1958)

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