“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” Dr. Seuss wrote those words in the book, I Can Read With My Eyes Shut, which celebrates the joys of reading. Every year his birthday, March 2nd, is Read Across America Day, celebrating the joys of literacy! We also celebrate him, the author who inspired individuals of all ages and left behind a legacy of genius and imagination.

In our ECE classes we celebrate his birthday every year, beginning our day with a reading of the Cat in the Hat with a 6th grader dressed up as the protagonist and teachers dressed up as Thing 1 and Thing 2. The children watch as the story is acted out, bringing the words to life and creating excitement around reading. In Junior Kindergarten, we are building pre-reading skills everyday through our letter of the week, phonological awareness, and narrative skills activities. We encourage the students to look at books and read stories daily, fostering an interest and enjoyment in the written word. I like to say that reading is a tool for learning, and through our passion projects and emergent curriculum, the Sea Turtles travel to space, into the ocean, and even to Whoville through books.