Dr. Seuss' Day

Just as March begins, we have the celebration of Dr. Seuss’ Day which is on March 2. This Friday all over the United States is the Read across America in honor of Dr. Seuss.  Dr. Seuss is a very familiar name to many children and educators for his contribution to children’s literature which includes the emergence of beginner’s books.

     Dr. Seuss is the pen name of Theodor Seuss Geisel.  He was born in 1904 and died in 1991.  He was a writer, a cartoonist, an artist, book publisher and animator.  One of best known books is Green Eggs and Hams.  His memorable character The Cat in the Hat has gone beyond existing within the pages of a book and has appeared in films and recently PBS has created a series inspired in this memorable children’s book.

     Dr. Seuss took up the challenge to create books that could be enjoyed by children using a limited amount of words.  The book The Cat in the Hat was written using 220 words.  This book was a response to an article as well as a book titled Why Johnny Can’t Read which identified the reason of literacy problems in children due to books that did not appeal their interests and were according to these writers “boring”.

     Dr. Seuss’ creativity brought to the children’s literature world characters like The Grinch, Horton and the unforgettable Cat with his very particular hat.  His illustrations were unique and admired not only by children but adults alike.  His writing style was usually in rhyme which makes these books very appealing to children.

     Dr. Seuss’ contribution will always be remembered because he brought a different perspective to children’s literature.  His books are fun to read but still with a vocabulary easy for children that are starting the journey to the fascinating world of literature.  Writing with a limited amount of vocabulary is a challenge not many writers can successfully achieve, but Dr. Seuss did it and has inspired writers to continue writing books that are fun, creative while motivating our children to become lifelong readers.

     So this Friday, let’s celebrate Dr. Seuss’ birthday reading and sharing books with our loved ones.