READING & WRITING
WRITING & CREATIVE TASKS – Ideas and resources
This week’s learning project focuses on the work of the author Dr Seuss.
WHO WAS DR SEUSS?
Challenge your child to become a researcher and find out some facts about the author Dr Seuss. Write a short biography including key information such as: What was his full name? When was he born? Where was he born? Interesting facts. Read more here or watch The History of Dr Seuss for Kids
Resources
- Mini biography writing frame
RHYME INVESTIGATORS
If there’s one element of Dr Seuss’ books that truly stands out, it is his tremendous use of rhyme. So, it only makes sense to make this a focus as we look at the books of Dr Seuss. Read together or listen to The Lorax by Dr Seuss Ask your child to make a list of words that rhyme as they listen. Challenge your child to a rhyming game, ask them to list two or more words that rhyme with words they heard in the story e.g. – a cat, a hat, a fox, a pair of socks, knees, trees, guy, buy, slow, grow, etc., Use the picture cards to play rhyming snap or matching pairs.
Resources
- Rhyming cards
- Rhyming word cards
RHYME CREATORS
Read together or listen to The Cat In The Hat by Dr Seuss.
Ask your child to listen out for rhyming words or any words that they enjoy. Ask them to write the words on a board or a piece of paper and add further ideas to create a word bank. This word bank can then be used to create nonsense sentences which rhyme or as ideas for a poem based on the them ‘What the Cat did’.
‘Never before did I see a fox, doing a dance in a pair of pink socks!’ Dr Seuss
Resources:
- Border art
PERFORMANCE POETRY
Ask your child to practice and perform their nonsense rhyme to an audience.
Alternatively have some fun reading aloud using different voices (e.g. slow, scared, angry, excited).
If possible play this game in a small group. Choose and cut out a Voices Spinner (see Resources). Place the spinner flat on the table and spin a pencil over the centre point of the spinner. Whichever voice the spinner points to is the voice you must use to read a page of the story
Take turns until you have read ‘The Cat in the Hat’ or another rhyme or story.
Resources:
- Cat in the Hat text
- Reading Voice spinners
DESIGN A HAT
One of the distinctive characteristics of the Cat in ‘The Cat in the Hat’ is his red and white hat. Challenge your child to design a new hat of distinctive shapes and colours.
Resources:
- Cat in the hat template
- Smaller hat template
THING ONE AND THING TWO
Review the story of ‘The Cat in the Hat’ focus on the actions of Thing One and Thing Two. Chaos is caused by these characters. Discuss with your child what they would do if they were in a similar situation to Sally and her brother. Ask them to record a list of actions that they would take.
Resources:
- If Thing One and Thing Two Came to My House
OH! THE PLACES YOU’LL GO!
Share the book : Oh, The Place You’ll Go! Read Aloud Picture Book.
Talk about the ideas in the book and the possibilities the future holds. Share ideas about future jobs, holidays, adventures, etc. Record some of the ideas in the activity book.
Resources:
- Oh! The Places You’ll Go! Activity Book
- Self inventory
MORE BOOKS BY DR SEUSS
- Share the story Fox in Socks
Activity: Fox in socks rhymes
- Share the story Mr. Brown can Moo. Can you?
Activity : Make a list of 10 - 20 onomatopoeic words and the things that make the sounds
- Share the story Oh the thinks you can think!
Activity: Chat with your child what they thought the book was going to be about before sharing. What do they think about it know that they have read it?
BOOK REVIEW
Talk about the books by Dr Seuss that you have shared this week. Ask your child to choose one of the texts to review. Encourage them to reflect on what they liked and disliked about the book
Resource:
- Book review template