Monday will be the largest reading celebration in America.
In celebration of National Education Association's Read Across America Day, schools throughout Arizona are hosting green eggs and ham breakfasts, family literacy activities, storybook character parades, celebrities reading to kids and authors sharing how they craft their books. Some schools are making Read Across America a week-long event.
Read Across America is an annual reading motivation awareness program that calls for every child in every community to celebrate reading on or around Dr. Seuss's birthday which is on Sunday, March 2
Dr. Seuss's use of rhyme makes his books an effective tool for teaching young children the basic skills they need to be successful. Initially created as a one-day event to celebrate reading on Dr. Seuss' birthday, March 2nd has grown into a nationwide initiative that promotes reading. For more about Read Across America, go to www.NEA.org and click on special events.
Here is a sampling of celebrations in the Valley:
Arizona Education Association
Arizona Education Association members will be reading to kids at Lela Alston School in the Isaac Elementary district and Sahuaro Elementary School in the Washington Elementary district.
Deer Valley Unified District
Canyon Springs Elementary this week will host a book exchange day and a Whoville Hair Day.
Bellair Elementary will serve green eggs and ham for breakfast and students will make a “thinking map'' about a Dr. Seuss book.
Mountain Shadows Elementary will host guest readers.
Dysart Unified School District
Students started celebrating on Friday Feb. 28 by focusing on a different Dr. Seuss book each day and hosting special events through Thursday. Examples are Crazy Hat Day for the Cat in the Hat, Twin Day for Yertle the Turtle and wearing clothes with many pockets for There's a Wocket in My Pocket, Spirit Shirt Day for Hooray for Diffendoofer Day and a storyteller assembly for Oh the Places You'll Go.
Madison Elementary School District
Camelview will have Janet Squires, author of the Gingerbread Cowboy, visiting with classes today. At 6 p.m., the school will host a Dr. Seuss/family literacy night. At Rose Lane, there will be guest readers in each classroom this morning. March 3 The Cat in a Hat character will make a guest appearance at Madison Traditional School.
Scottsdale Unified School District
From 2 to 4 p.m. today, Scottsdale school district students will read books and decorate cookies as part of NEA Read Across America Day at Paradise Bakery & Café, 7000 E. Mayo Blvd.
Washington Elementary School District
Washington Elementary School District is serving green eggs and ham at all its schools for breakfast. It is kicking off Read Across America with a celebration at Sahuaro Elementary School in Phoenix. In addition to Superintendent Susie Cook, Washington school board members, Washington Education Association, state legislators and business leaders will join students in celebration of Read Across America Day. Many will head out to schools to read to students in the classroom.
Lookout Mountain students and teachers will dress up as their favorite book characters participating in a school-wide parade.
Mountain View School seventh graders will have a “poetry slam'' and their readings will be
shown on the intra-school TV system after morning announcements.
At Ocotillo, author/illustrator Diane de Groat will work with grades K-3 in grade level sessions in the library. Sahuaro Elementary
At Shaw Butte, Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, ASU authors, dancers from the Coyotes hockey team, authors Gary and Madeline Bennett, and Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, will read with students throughout the day.
Sunburst Elementary will be hosting Read Across America trivia and stories to music. Each student will be given a book from the Metro Lions Club. They will also listen to volunteer readers from ASU West, the OASIS organization, Luke Air Force base, and the community.
Sunset Elementary will have green eggs & ham for breakfast and green sherbet for lunch as well as host guest readers. On Wednesday, they will have a family literacy night. Students are creating drawings of their favorite book character.
Lori Baker is mom to two daughters, 21 and 23 years old. She is
editor for the Valley and State section's Education and Environment pages in the Arizona Republic.
So good to know Dr. Seuss is
So good to know Dr. Seuss is alive and well in an era of Play Stations, school shootings, and everything iPod! :)
My girls' classes have been
My girls' classes have been reading Dr. Seuss's books for the last couple of weeks. They both want to take a Dr. Seuss book to school on Monday for a celebration. They are in a Tempe Dist. 3 school. (kindergarten and 3rd grade)
KarilouMomof2 is a discussion leader for arizonamoms.com living in Tempe. Her daughters are 9 and 6.