Dr Seuss

               
 
Theodor Seuss Geisel (1904 - 1991) or Dr Seuss as he is better known, credited his mother for his need to create the rhymes for which he become so well known. She would soothe her children to sleep by singing rhymes which she remembered from her childhood.
In 1957 he wrote a book, which could be considered to be the defining book of his career; The Cat in the Hat. Houghton Miffin (a publishing house) asked Ted to write and illustrate a children's book using what is known as 'dolch' or high frequency listed by Edward William Dolch.

Some of these words can be sounded out using phonic skills but others are what are known as 'sight words' and require visual memorisation.

These books are useful for dyslexic students. Many children who are dyslexic have a very poor concept of rhyme. It is suggested that the books are introduced to the child after they have done some rhyming activities. You can try your hand at being creative and make your own rhyming cards which connect to the book you have chosen. There are websites which allow you to 'generate' or make your own material. A link for one such site is listed below (k-3teacherresources.com).

The books also provide excellent reading practice for children who need to use their phonic skills in order to decode words and to use their visual memory in order to recognise words which are are 'sight' words.

Some of the books are fairly long, so it would be a good idea if they are broken into parts. There are websites which provide various activites which relate to the books (see below in list).

As always, it is essential to keep the child's age and needs in mind when introducing them to new reading material.

 
Some useful resources:

http://www.k-3teacherresources.com/nursery-rhyme-activities.html

http://kids-indoor-activities.suite101.com/article.cfm/free_dr_seuss_activities_seussvillecom

http://www.janbrett.com/games/jan_brett_dolch_word_list_main.htm


http://www.mrsperkins.com/