Monday: School Spirit/Book and a Buddy Day
Monday (Day 112) was the last day in the month of February. In my school this is our designated School Spirit Day. The students wore our school colors and brought a book to share with a buddy. During independent reading time (all week), they read with a buddy and got to share some ideas about each book.
Tuesday: Crazy Hair/Socks Day
Tuesday (Day 113) was one of the favorites for the week. The students came in with all manner of crazy hair and/or socks. There was colored hair, just-got-out-of-bed hair, many ponytails, braids, colored hair extensions, and an updo held in by pencils (mine). The socks ranged from mismatched to various prints (tie dye, stars, stripes, sport figures, words, and slipper socks).
Wednesday: Dr. Seuss Day
On Wednesday (Day 114) we wore our red, black, and white to represent The Cat in the Hat, one of the best-known Dr. Seuss characters. We also brought in our favorite Dr. Seuss books to share with the class. The cafeteria served birthday cake in honor of Theodore Giesel's birthday. In the past we had volunteers dress as the Cat in the Hat and visit the students during lunch, but that didn't happen this year.
Thursday: Pajama Day
Thursday (Day 115) was the most favorite day of the week. The students came to school in their pajamas. They also brought their slippers, stuffed animals, blankets, and their favorite bedtime book. We camped out on the floor of the classroom with our books and read to each other.
Friday: Beach and a Book Day
Friday (Day 116) was a day spent at the beach. The reading specialists in the school turned our cafeteria into a beach for the day, complete with inflatable palm trees, beach balls, and the sounds of the Beach Boys and the ocean waves. Each grade level was assigned a block of time to come and visit the beach. The students brought in a book, a beach towel, and sunglasses. When we got to "the beach," laid out our towels. Once we were situated, we played a few games of beach ball volleyball, where the students tossed around about 12 beach balls to Beach Boys songs. After that, we settled on our towels and listened to the sounds of the ocean while we read. It was hard to leave after our session!
Throughout Read Across America Week, the morning announcements include a snippet or two from different Dr. Seuss stories. The children have to guess which story is being read. It always amazes me how many stories my students know! I also push aside our regular read aloud during this week to read different Dr. Seuss stories to the students. A few years ago I bought Your Favorite Seuss: A Baker's Dozen by the One and Only Dr. Seuss, and I read to my students from that. I like to include some of the background information the book has for each story. For example, the Grinch character is based on Theodore Giesel himself. And the story Green Eggs and Ham was written on a bet from a publisher that Theodore Giesel couldn't write a story that used less than 50 individual words. (He won, by the way.) The children always get a kick out of those little extras.
Some other activities we do during this week are:
*We complete a sequencing activity with Green Eggs and Ham.
*We rate the Cat in the Hat in The Cat in the Hat Comes Back as if he were a student (listening skills, problem solving, etc.).
*We explore Seussville on the computer during lab.
The children really enjoy the things we do this week, and it sort of jump starts them again, even though some of their minds my be looking ahead to spring already.
If you are looking ahead to next year and want to look up books to plan your Read Across America Week or Dr. Seuss Day, check out this site. You will find resources for books, board games, videos, movies, and a comprehensive listing of all Dr. Seuss books.
If you have any ideas or other neat sites, drop me a post!
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