Dr. Seuss turns 114 years old
Born on March 2 in 1904, Theodor Seuss Geisel was destined to become one of the best known and most popular children’s book authors. In celebration of the ninth best selling fiction author of all time, the Ward County Public Library, Main Street Books and the Minot Public Library are all putting on a celebration in his memory.
Seuss’s first book, “And to Think I Saw It on Mulberry Street,” was published in 1937. From there, he published 60 books before his death in 1991, including “Green Eggs and Ham” in 1960, “Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now!” in 1972, and “Oh, the Places You’ll Go” in 1990. His books have touched the reading lives of many generations, helping children to learn to read and find the fun in words through his rhyming and fun.
According to the Minot Public Library, at the time Seuss started publishing, most books for beginning readers were very structured using the standard words that children were learning in school. Most of these books lacked a plot and weren’t exciting to read. Seuss worked to change that through his rhyming and storytelling. To add to the interest and fun of his books, he added in fun illustrations to help children develop some visual literacy skills.
His books were so revolutionary in children’s reading and so popular, that today they continue to sell and continue to be used to help teach young children to read. “Oh the Places You’ll Go” is also a popular graduation gift and theme.
On March 2, the Ward County Library will kick off the Seuss birthday celebration at 3 p.m. until 5 p.m. The party will be geared towards kids aged 3 to 12, having games, crafts, treats, movies, and other activities based on Seuss’s books. Some of the stations in the library will include a Gack ring toss (from the book “One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish”), pin the heart on the Grinch, make your own Lorax mustache, a selfie station, and more.
On March 3, Main Street Books will take their turn at 11 a.m. to celebrate. They have a few different activities planned for the hour, such as a reading of one of Seuss’ books. After that they will have a fun physical activity with a musical Seuss walk . There will be face painting and cupcake decorating for kids to enjoy and celebrate the late author.
The final celebration of the weekend will be March 4 at the Minot Public Library. They will be teaming up with the Minot Education Association to celebrate Dr. Seuss’ Birthday at 1 p.m. A variety of activities are planned that relate to different books written by Seuss.
“Children will be able to Hop on Pop and make Green Eggs and Ham. They can Ring the Cat or make a Daisy Head Maisy Headband. Everyone from two to 92 are invited to join in the fun,” according to a press release.
Dr. Seuss has continued to help children learn and read in fun, imaginative ways well past his death and still plays a large role in helping kids find the fun in reading. According to the Minot Public Library, when a child enjoys reading, they’re more likely to practice the skills they learn in school while those who don’t enjoy reading may struggle. Reading to your children and teaching them to read can help them build d the skills necessary to become a lifetime reader.
All events are free for all to enjoy.