March 2nd is Dr. Seuss’s birthday, which has nationally become known as Read Aloud Day. This is a great opportunity to increase literacy in younger children by sharing Dr. Seuss’s extensive collection of great kids books. Many preschool and elementary school teachers include crafts inspired by the books as a way to increase excitement and student involvement with the stories.

Unfortunately, the mass popularity of Green Eggs and Ham sometimes leads to the exclusion of kids with egg allergies when real eggs get involved.

Nobody likes to see their child get excluded–especially when a dangerous item gets brought into the classroom. If your child has an egg allergy, it’s not too late to ask your child’s teacher what her/his plans are for the day, and to steer them towards a safer way to celebrate.

Here are some great suggestions, and a Google search for “Dr. Seuss crafts” will point you towards dozens more!

Cat in the Hat hats

Cut out the flat center part of the paper plate. Cut red stripes roughly two inches wide from the red construction paper (this can be done in advance for younger kids.)

Glue red stripes onto a white piece of construction paper. Curl the striped paper into a tube and insert the bottom 2-3 inches into the hole in the paper plate. Glue or staple the tube together.

Cut 2 inch slits in the bottom of the tube and fold the resulting flaps under the rim of the paper plate. Staple the flaps to the plate to secure the two pieces together.

Bingo! It’s the Cat’s Hat! (You could secure it with string or elastic if the kiddos are going to be wearing it for a long time.)

Cat mask courtesy of my seven-year-old

Handprint Thing 1 and Thing 2

What child doesn’t like to paint with their hands? These are fun to make and a great keepsake to remember how small their hands are!

Start by painting the child’s palms and all fingers EXCEPT the middle finger with red paint.

Have them place their hands on a piece of paper with the fingers towards the edge. Having an adult press down on the top of their hands before lifting will make sure fewer gaps are left. Have the child wash their hands and then return.

Paint the child’s palm white and their fingers blue, getting a little blue onto the perimeter of the palm as well. Flip the red handprints upside down and line up each hand so that the red handprint is a Thing’s body, the new white palm will be the head, and the fingers are the hair. Again, have the child wash their hands.

Once the paint is dry, add a white spot to the center of the body, and then draw features on the face. Write “Thing 1” and “Thing 2” in the white circle once that paint is dry.

Toilet Paper Tube Horton with Clover

This loveable elephant is easy to make, although younger kids may need an adult to cut out Horton’s features.

Have the children paint toilet paper tubes gray. Allow to dry.

While waiting, have the children cut out Horton’s ears, trunk, and make a black fringe for hair. You can use construction paper or craft foam.

Glue these in place, and then use a marker to draw Horton’s features.

Glue a pom pom to the end of a chenille stem for the clover, and glue a speck of paper for the dust speck, if you like.

With a little creativity, there’s no need for any children to be left out of the Dr. Seuss Day festivities. Remember, the moral of Green Eggs and Ham is that we should be willing to try new things! That goes for educators too!

Credit where credit is due: I got the hat ideas from this blog, the handprint things from this blog, and Horton from this blog.

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