DR.SEUSS

1. DR.SEUSS Edited by: Mrs. Middleton

2. 1. Was Dr. Seuss his real name? • Not exactly. His name was Theodore Seuss Geisel - Seuss being his mother's maiden name. • He started using it as a joke. • He added the Dr. later…because his father had always wanted him to get a doctorate and become a professor.

3. 2. How many books did he write? • Between 1937 and 1991, when he died aged 87, he published more than 40 books • He’s sold half a billion copies between them - more even than J K Rowling's Harry Potter books. • He nearly burned his first book, And to think that I saw it on Mulberry Street, after it was turned down by 27 publishers.

4. 3. Did he have children himself? • No. • His widow, Audrey, said in a recent interview that he was slightly afraid of them. She said he was always thinking: "What might they do next? What might they ask next?"

5. 4. Where did he get his ideas from? • This was a question he didn’t like being asked. • His mother was one source of inspiration: she worked in a bakery and would sing him to sleep in his childhood with her "pie-selling chants". • One of his most popular books, Green Eggs and Ham, was the result of a bet that he could not write a book using only 50 words.

6. could; • may will see tree; • let me be; • train on; • say the dark; • rain; • goat; • boat; • so try may; • if; • good; • thank. These are, in order of appearance: • I am Sam; • that; • do not like; • you green eggsand ham; • them; would here or there; • anywhere; • in a house with mouse; • eat box fox; • car they;

7. 5. Where did he live? • He was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, where his grandparents lived on Mulberry Street - hence the title of his first book. • He studied at Dartmouth College (in the US) and Oxford University (in the UK). • In 1948 he bought an old observation tower in California, where he would shut himself away in a studio for at least eight hours a day, sometimes literally wearing a thinking cap.

8. 6. Which are his most popular books? • The Cat in the Hat • Green Eggs and Ham • How the Grinch Stole Christmas! • Fox in Socks • The Cat in the Hat Comes Back • One Fish Two Fish

9. 7. What impact did they have on children's books? • A revolutionary one. • He has been credited with moving past "Dick and Jane" by replacing them with clever rhymes, plot twists and rebellious heroes who do the unexpected. • The Cat in the Hat was commissioned following publication in 1955 of an influential book, Why Johnny Can't Read, which said children were being held back by boring books. • After The Cat in the Hat, Dr. Seuss was recognized as a good example of what could be done with a creative imagination. Now, one in four American children receive a Dr. Seuss as their first book.

10. 8. Have the books ever been made into films? • There have been a number of animated films. More recently, a version of How the Grinch stole Christmas! starring Jim Carrey. It was the highest grossing film in the USA in the year 2000. A film of The Cat in the Hat, starring Mike Myers, was described by some critics as the worst film of the year in the USA in 2003, though it also did well financially.

11. 9. What did he think was his greatest work? • Dr. Seuss once said it was not a book or an illustration, but the Lion Wading Pool at Wild Animal Park in San Diego, which he donated in 1973. In this artwork, Seuss’s family pride of four lions purposefully strolls along a path of inventively patterned trees as they explore their next adventure.

12. 10. Which was his most controversial book? • The Butter Battle Book, published in 1984, about the arms race. Taking the place of the US and the USSR are the Yooks and the Zooks, who disagree on whether bread should be eaten butter-side down, or butter-side up. • The story ends with a blank page, allowing readers to imagine the result of the rising tensions for themselves. The book remained on the New York Times' bestseller list for six months - for adults. The televised version of the book was shown in the USSR in 1990; Dr Seuss joked that it was after this that the country began falling apart.

13. Why do we honor him? • The National Education Association recognizes his birthday, March 2, as National Read Across America Day. • Because of his impact on children’s literature, he is the honoree

14. What will we do at Tanner Williams Elementary for National Read Across America Day? • Create book reports on our favorite books • Present book reports in the media center during library time the last week of February • Participate in Dr. Seuss stations on March 3, 2008 • Parade book reports during school-wide assembly

15. How will they look? • Kindergarten- Book Report Sash

16. Book Reports • First Grade-Book Report Vests

17. High Flying Reports • Second Grade- Flag Book Reports

18. It’s in the Bag • Third Grade- Bag Book Report

19. Tied Up with Reading • Fourth Grade- Tie Book Report

20. Hats Off to Reading • Fifth Grade- Hat Reports

21. Dr. Seuss Celebration • Book Report Parade

22. Tanner Williamsville 2007 • Celebrate Reading!