You could easily do a whole month of home preschool about Dr. Seuss! There are so many great books, activities, and crafts that you can choose from. Here's what my girls and I got into this week. At the time we did these activities, Lena was a young 4 and Maggie was about 2 1/2.
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Hop On Pop Gross Motor Game
Here is a fun gross motor activity to accompany the book Hop on Pop. My girls loved this, and it got them good and worn out before nap time! It's also highly adaptable to any subject you may be working on with your child.
Counting and Stacking With Ten Apples Up On Top
We worked on math and stacking this week using the Dr. Seuss book Ten Apples Up On Top! Click over to this post to read all about this activity that is super simple, but covers tons of great preschool skills. It was a real winner!
Copywork
I realize that many preschoolers may not be ready for (or interested in) copywork. But Lena loves to write, and so, by golly, I'm going to let her write and make it fun for her! This week I got her this cute pad of paper, which I found locally at JoAnn (with 50% off coupon!).
I wrote out several Dr. Seuss related sentences each day and she eagerly copied them. While you certainly don't have to have a Cat in the Hat pad of paper to practice writing, it made it a little bit more exciting for Lena and helped to tie our week all together.
Truffula Tree Math
We didn't do this activity this week, but we did it several months ago during our tree theme week. It works well for Dr. Seuss, too!
First I made truffula trees (from the Lorax) using striped pipecleaners, pompoms and hot glue. Then I filled a small container with beans from our one of our sensory boxes deep enough so that the trees would stand up.
I wrote out little numbers and basic math symbols and had Lena use the trees to complete basic math problems.
Shape Matching
I loved the book The Shape of Me and Other Stuff when I read it for the first time this week, so I designed this cute shape matching activity to go along with it. You have everything you need on hand, I promise!Fine Motor Eraser Grabbing
Several weeks ago I picked up these mini erasers from the Target dollar section. (This is one good reason to know what some of your upcoming themes might be-- you can keep an eye out while you shop for things that you might use.)
I set out a little bowl of erasers for each of my girls, along with a muffin tin and an ice cube tray, and two pairs of tongs-- one little and one big. They used the tongs to move the erasers back and forth. Great for developing little hand muscles!
Picture Books
Oy, where do I begin?! There are, of course, dozens of Dr. Seuss books, and it feels like we read most of them this week! I put together a list of some of the ones you may not be familiar with.Snacks
We managed to have a Dr. Seuss snack every day this week! They were all really simple and easy, but I didn't get pictures of them all.- Vanilla yogurt dyed green, with a vanilla wafer in the middle (Green Eggs and Ham)
- Blue jello with gummy fish for One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish
- Teddy grahams became Barbaloots (little bears from The Lorax)
- Colored goldfish crackers for the book One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish
- Cheese sticks decorated to look like the Cat in the Hat
Music App
Originally, I was at a loss when I tried to think of something music related to do for Dr. Seuss week. Then, I checked the App Store and found this awesome music game! It's called Dr. Seuss Band, and it features this funky Seuss-y horn, and lots of cute songs. Your child plays along using the buttons on the bottom of the screen.
I really liked this game, and Lena loved it, too. It helps develop musicality, and encourages kids to pay attention to the rhythm and melody in a song. It's also very tolerable (and actually really fun) for adults to play, too, unlike most kids games. Lena and I enjoyed sitting on the couch and playing together, cheering each other on.
Failed Oobleck
It's not Dr. Seuss week without oobleck, right? Oobleck is a make-believe substance from the Dr. Seuss book Bartholomew and the Oobleck. It's green and sticky and slimy and comes from the sky. Lots of people make their own oobleck to play with as a book extension activity.
I may have mentioned before that my girls like to be clean, and can be a little sensitive around things that are too messy. Well, I just had to laugh at their response to the oobleck we made. They were both so excited when I told them what we were doing. We re-read the story and they eagerly helped me gather our materials. I used this recipe from Craft Knife and got started.
As soon as we dumped in the cornstarch, Lena jumped from the table because she said it smelled bad. She wouldn't come back. Maggie absolutely refused to let me actually stir in the cornstarch, but wanted it to just sit on top of the green-dyed water.
This picture sums it up perfectly. Oobleck? No, thank you!
Need even more ideas for a Dr. Seuss week? Follow Cutting Tiny Bites on Pinterest or check out the Dr. Seuss theme board below.