The Book We Love
This week I let Aedan choose the book for our post, instead of me taking full control, and he picked "Green Eggs and Ham" by Dr. Seuss! I think it's because they've been studying him in kindergarten, and here towards the end of the school year Aedan knows his words well enough that he can read most of the book himself! It's always a magic moment when they go from learning letters and individual sounds, to words and being able to combine those letters, to the point where they realize they can read a full book themselves! Although, they still like when the adults do the reading too.
The Activity We Did
"I would not like them here or there. I would not like them anywhere."
Seuss, Dr. Green Eggs and Ham, 1988. Print.
Sensory Drawing Challenge
You Will Need:
- Printer Paper
- Pencils
- Box or basket (something to cover your hand while you draw)
- Couch or chairs, or use the floor (something to allow you to draw upside down)
- Baseball hat, or scarf (something to cover your eyes while you draw)
How to Play:
During our activity, we tested our skills to see how well we can draw in different atmospheres! Just like how the main character in the book says he won't like green eggs and ham on a boat, with a goat, in the rain, on a train... not here, not in a box, not in a tree, not in the dark! Sometimes what's around you can change the way things work for you!
First, fold your piece of paper in half, and then half again, making four sections. Draw lines on your folds to designate the different areas. Here are the drawing challenges:
- Here: Draw normally! Our drawings were a triangle, on top of a circle, on top of a square. The look of the original drawing looks doesn't really matter, as long as you try to re-create it when doing the other challenges! So, we had a few different starting creations, with some people stacking the shapes, and others putting them in height order.
- Box: Find a large box or basket that can sit on top of your hand while you try to draw the same creation from the "Here" section. It's all about trying to do something new, so this time trying to draw something while you can't see it. Your hand is also more restricted because the box is sitting on top.
- "Tree": For this section we tried drawing while being upside down! The easiest solution was to sit backwards on the couch and then lean to the ground. This one was the most complicated because you were visually looking at the paper from a different view, but also your hand was in a not-normal writing position.
- Dark: You could try doing this in a room that's dark, but we have too many outside lights so it didn't work. We ended up putting a hat over our faces to keep us from seeing the page. It was similar to the "Box" challenge, but instead of being disconnected from your arm, your eyes were shut off from the experience. It does lead to a more claustrophobic experience though, because you can't see what everyone else is doing around you!
The Food We Ate
"I do so like green eggs and ham! Thank you! Thank, you Sam-I-am!"
Seuss, Dr. Green Eggs and Ham, 1988. Print.
Candy Trials
You Will Need:
- Various Candy! We went to a local candy shop, Rocket Fizz, but you can get a box of foreign snacks, or even hit up the Dollar Tree for some cheaper candy options.
Have each person in the group pick out a candy they want to try -- a strange flavor, or something new! Share what you think about your new candy, and share the rest with the other group members.
- Brandon picked Wax Bottle Candy - which the kids loved but I couldn't handle biting through the wax coating to get to the candy juice
- Aedan chose Salt Water Taffy - always a classic, which we all loved
- Faye chose Fruity Sixlets - odd because it's chocolate on the inside with a fruity candy coating, but regular Sixlets are my favorite
- And I chose a chocolate ribbon candy, that I really don't recommend, and can't find online now!
Other Fun Ideas
"Would you eat them in a box? Would you eat them with a fox?"
Seuss, Dr. Green Eggs and Ham, 1988. Print.
Rhyme Matching
A matching game that's educational! Instead of just matching things that are the same, match things that rhyme! Different difficulty levels if you want to play with pictures and words, just words, or just pictures!
Other Activities
Some other fun resources for the book, and other crafty ideas that we didn't do... yet.
- Netflix Show: There's a cute cartoon featuring the same characters from the book! "Green Eggs and Ham" has Season 2 coming, so it must have been an entertaining show!
- Word Families Poster: Here's a great educational resource to help kids learn about word families! What words rhyme and connect with each other. To be honest, when I was making the printable, I was thinking here and there rhymed, but they don't! My husband pointed it out, so we're always learning and re-learning!
- YouTube Reading: Here's a video of Laura Miller reading the book, complete with animated characters and words highlighted as the book is "read," to help kids follow along.
- Green Eggs and Ham Cafe: Aedan's favorite land at Universal Studios is Seussland! Since we live in Orlando, we go to the theme parks often. We'll have to stop for some lunch next trip!
- Philosophical Discussion from The Prindle Institute for Ethics: I love referring to this site for more insightful looks at the kid books we talk about. Kid books can be fun, but they are a great way to teach as well! There is knowledge to be found everywhere you look!
- Green Eggs and Ham Recipe: I can barely get my kids to eat regular scrambled eggs, so green ones aren't going to fly at my house, but maybe your kids are more adventurous!
- "Ham-ophones": One more educational link, to help kids learn about related words. This time it's homophones, so words that sound the same but have different meanings and spellings -- like knot and not.
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