Alphabet Adventures: February 2012

Daily Question: Do you like Green Eggs and Ham? I was surprised when most of the students (even those hesitant to eat anything new) responded "Yes!" Their answers evolved over the course of the day.

Toys: Fisher Price Little people Village, Candy Land Board Game

Snack: Apple Slices, Chocolate Chip Chewy Granola Bars, and fruit snacks.

Circle Time: Today's theme, Dr. Seuss Day, is in honor of Theodore "Ted" Seuss Geisel (Mar 2, 1904-Sept. 21, 1991). Dr. Seuss is a well known author who wrote under the names (and pen names) Dr. Seuss (60 books), Theo LeSieg (12 books) and, in one case, Rosetta Stone. Ted's mother used to soothe her two children to sleep by "chanting" rhymes from her youth. Ted credits his mother for the ability and desire to rhyme. Seuss attended Dartmouth and Oxford. Helen Palmer was his first wife. Ted began illustrating and cartooning for advertisers. His first book, And to Think It All Happened on Mulberry Street was rejected 27 times before being printed. Under a contract with Random House Publishers, Ted produced The Cat in the Hat (to use 225 "new reader" words.) It became a success. After his first wife died, Ted married Audrey Stone Giesel, who influenced his later books. In all, Dr. Seuss wrote over 60 children's books which have been translated into 15 languages and been published into over 200 million copies around the world.
Dr. Seuss had no children of his own but was over heard saying to a mother, "You have 'em; and I'll entertain 'em!" Dr. Seuss revolutionized learning and early reading in America.

Dr. Seuss Animated Books:
After Snack Time, the students enjoyed watching three Dr. Seuss books on screen for a few minutes (while I set up the activities). They were: Dr. Seuss's ABCs, I Can Read With My Eye's Shut, Mr.Brown Can M oo. Can You?

Green Eggs and Ham Lesson
Sam-I-Am! Name tags: Each student wrote his/her name on a "________ I Am" tag. We talked about Green Eggs and Ham and how in the book there is a Sam who tells us he is "Sam I Am." Each student "read" their name tag as "______ I am."

Math/Science Lesson: Graphing and Hypothesis. We then talked about who would try "green eggs and ham." They got a "yes" card. Those who thought they would not like and would not try the eggs got a "no" card. Then the students lined up and put their cards on a graph. We then counted up all the "yes" and "no" votes. There were 3-4 votes in favor of "no" at this point.

Children are shouting "Ham!"

Then we sat down to some "Green Eggs and Ham." I was surprised and happy by those bold enough to try it. As they tried (or didn't try) the green eggs, we read the story.
For those understandable students who were hesitant to try--we talked about "if we do not try something new, we may not know whether we like it or not."

Cooking in the Kitchen: Green Eggs and Ham Recipe: I diced about a cup of ham and sauted it in a small amount of oil in a non-stick pan. To a medium bowl, I added 1/2 C. of cut up spinach, 5 whisked eggs, some salt, a pinch of Oreganco, Basil, Chives, and Parsley and 4-6 drops of green food coloring and 2 drops of blue food coloring(because the eggs are yellow). I added this to the hot, cubed ham and scrambled it on Medium for a few minutes until cooked through.

(No one had to try them. I was happy when one little guy told his dad and me, "I tried it! I like green eggs and ham. I ate them ALL!" This was a little guy who had voted "no" he did not like and did not want to try them.)

Olivia is not so sure about trying these "green" eggs.

Scrambled Green Eggs and Ham Game. We had fun "scrambling" the students with their paper "eggs" and letting them try and put their eggs on the platter.

Take Home Activities: To do on Friday, March 2, Read Across America Day (Dr. Seuss' Birthday).

Green Eggs and Ham, "Sam I Am" Coloring Page
Green Eggs Tic Tac Toe Game and Coloring Page
Read YOUR favorite Dr. Seuss book aloud.

What is my Favorite Dr. Seuss book? Oh, the Places You'll Go!

Dr. Seuss Books: A list of the Dr. Seuss books by Theodor Seuss Geisel in the order they were published. From the website: http://kids.hcpl.net/kidsread/drseussbooks.htm.

	And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (1937) A boy imagines a series of incredible sights on his way home from school so that he will have an interesting report to give his father.
	The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins (1938) Each time Bartholomew Cubbins attempts to obey the King's order to take off his hat, he finds there is another one on his head.
	The King's Stilts (1939) When the King's stilts are stolen and hidden, and he can no longer enjoy his play hour, the whole kingdom is threatened with destruction until a page boy bravely saves the day.
	Horton Hatches the Egg (1940) When a lazy bird hatching an egg wants a vacation, she asks Horton, the elephant, to sit on her egg--which he does through all sorts of hazards until he is rewarded for doing what he said he would.
	McElligot's Pool (1947) A boy imagines the rare and wonderful fish he might catch in McElligot's pool.
	Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose (1948) When a moose gives a Bingle Bug a ride on his horns, he unwillingly becomes host to a large number of freeloading pests.
	Bartholomew and the Oobleck (1949) An ooey-gooey, green oobleck was not exactly what the king had in mind when he ordered something extra-special from his royal magicians.
	If I Ran the Zoo (1950) If Gerald McGrew ran the zoo, he'd let all the animals go and fill it with more unusual beasts--a ten-footed lion, an Elephant-Cat, a Mulligatawny, a Tufted Mazurka, and others.
	Scrambled Eggs Super! (1953) Tired of scrambled eggs always tasting the same, Peter T. Hooper goes on a great egg hunt for his new recipe.
	Horton Hears a Who! (1954) A city of Whos on a speck of dust are threatened with destruction until the smallest Who of all helps convince Horton's friends that Whos really exist.
	On Beyond Zebra (1955) An alphabet book about all of the letters that come after "z."
	If I Ran the Circus (1956) A young boy imagines the fantastic animals and incredible acts he will have for his greatest of all circuses.
	The Cat in the Hat (1957) Two children sitting at home on a rainy day are visited by the Cat in the Hat, who shows them some tricks and games.
	How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1957) The Grinch tries to stop Christmas from arriving by stealing all the presents and food from the village, but much to his surprise it comes anyway.
	Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories (1958) Three modern fables in humorous pictures and verse: "Yertle the Turtle," "Gertrude McFuzz," and "The Big Brag."
	The Cat in the Hat Comes Back! (1958) The Cat in the Hat leaves a big pink ring in the tub and moves it from place to place with the help of his alphabet friends.
	Happy Birthday to You! (1959) Describes a birthday celebration in Katroo presided over by the Birthday Bird.
	Green Eggs and Ham (1960) Sam-I-Am mounts a determined campaign to convince another Seuss character to eat a plate of green eggs and ham.
	One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish (1960) A story-poem about the activities of such unusual animals as the Nook, Wump, Yink, Yop, Gack, and the Zeds.
	The Sneetches and Other Stories (1961) Includes four humorous verse fantasies: The Sneetches, The Zax, The Many Daves, and What was I Scared of?
	Dr. Seuss's Sleep Book (1962) Tells, in verse, what happens when all ninety-nine zillion nine trillion and three creatures in the world go to sleep.
	Dr. Seuss's ABC (1963) Dr. Seuss presents the letters and their sounds, and shows how the sounds join to form words.
	Hop on Pop (1963) Pairs of rhyming words are introduced and used in simple sentences, such as "Day. Play. We play all day. Night. Fight. We fight all night."
	Fox in Socks (1965) The smart Fox uses difficult tongue twisters to get the confused Mr. Knox in trouble with his tongue.
	I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew (1965) A funny adventure as the main character tries to get to Solla Sollew, a place where there are no troubles.
	The Cat in the Hat Song Book (1967) This classically wacky songbook contains 19 Seuss-songs for the beginning singer. There are lively songs like "Plinker Plunker" and "The No Laugh Race," bedtime songs like "Lullaby for Mr. Benjamin B. Bickelbaum," and just plain silly songs like "Cry a Pint." With a sturdy binding that opens flat for easy use, and simple piano and guitar arrangements, The Cat in the Hat Songbook is truly something to sing about!
	The Foot Book (1968) Beginner's text describes all sorts of feet doing all sorts of things.
	I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today! And Other Stories (1969) Three stories in verse: "I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today," "King Looie Katz, " and "The Glunk That Got Thunk."
	My Book About Me (1969)
	I Can Draw It Myself (1970)
	Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? (1970) Mr. Brown is an expert at imitating all sorts of noises.
	The Lorax (1971) When the Truffula trees are all chopped down, a once-beautiful forest suddenly becomes a smog covered dump.
	Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now! (1972) Suggests in rhyme a number of ways for Marvin K. Mooney to travel as long as he gets going--now!
	Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are? (1973) Compared to the problems of some of the creatures the old man describes, the boy is really quite lucky.
	The Shape of Me and Other Stuff (1973) Rhyme and silhouette drawings introduce the shape of bugs, balloons, peanuts, camels, spider webs, and many other familiar objects.
	Great Day for Up (1974) Rhymed text and illustrations introduce the many meanings of "up."
	There's a Wocket in My Pocket! (1974) A household of unusual creatures help beginning readers recognize common "household" words.
	Oh, the Thinks You Can Think! (1975) Relates in verse some of the unusual thinks you can think if only you try.
	The Cat's Quizzer (1976) The Cat in the Hat plays quiz master by challenging the reader with both entertaining and educational questions such as "Are freckles catching?" and "How old do you have to be to drive a car?"
	I Can Read With My Eyes Shut! (1978) The Cat in the Hat takes Young Cat in tow to show him the fun he can get out of reading.
	Oh Say Can You Say? (1979) A collection of nonsensical tongue twisters.
	Hunches in Bunches (1982) A boy has a difficult time making decisions even though there is a vocal bunch of Hunches to help him.
	The Butter Battle Book (1984) Engaged in a long-running battle, the Yooks and the Zooks develop more and more sophisticated weaponry as they attempt to outdo each other.
	You're Only Old Once! (1986) Dr. Seuss lightens the aches and pains of growing old with his inimitable wit and wisdom. In this new defense against aging, we follow our hapless hero through his checkup with the experts at the Golden Years Clinic.
	I Am Not Going to Get Up Today! (1987) A boy is so sleepy that he vows nothing will get him out of his morning bed, neither peas and beans nor the United States Marines.
	Oh, the Places You'll Go! (1990) Advice in rhyme for proceeding in life; weathering fear, loneliness, and confusion; and being in charge of your actions.
	Daisy-Head Mayzie (1994) Young Mayzie McGrew becomes a worldwide sensation when a daisy grows out of the top of her head, and everyone attempts to get rid of it.
	My Many Colored Days (1996) This rhyming story describes each day in terms of a particular color which in turn is associated with specific emotions.
	Hooray for Diffendoofer Day! (1998) The students of Diffendoofer School celebrate their unusual teachers and curriculum, including Miss Fribble who teaches laughing, Miss Bonkers who teaches frogs to dance, and Mr. Katz who builds robotic rats.