1-2-3 Come Do Some Seuss-Themed Writing Prompts With Me
Louis L'amour said: "Start writing no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on." However, if "It's time to do some writing..." is greeted with a cacophony of classroom groans, it's definitely time to fuel your students' imaginations, peak their interest, and tweak what they write, so that they'll WANT to.
Many Dr. Seuss books, lend themselves to interesting and fun writing prompts. (For a complete list of his books, scroll down to yesterday's article.) Today's blog features some of my most popular, Seuss-themed, writing prompts. Hopefully, writing time, will be met with the more harmonious and intellectual sounds of engaged and busy minds happily working away.
After reading Dr. Seuss's ABC book, create a silly, creature-filled class-made alphabet book. Print and trim the mini letter tiles. Toss them into a Seuss hat. Students choose one, glue it to their page and think of a creature that starts with that letter.
Stress imagination and creativity. These should be made up creatures like the ones that Dr. Seuss thought of. Younger students can simply name their animal and draw a picture.
Encourage and challenge older students to make a rhyming sentence, using plenty of tongue-twisting alliteration like Dr. Seuss.
For example, Zz is for a Zigglewag who likes to play wiggle tag. He eats zinnias, zingles and zag, all of which make me personally gag. or Bb is for Boomtoot, who's from Bangladoot and likes to eat fruit, especially bapples, belon and bloot.
The packet includes a page for students and one for the teacher, a sample, plus 26 Seuss-font letter tiles.
Another Alphabet book I think your students will enjoy making is On Before Ant. This is a take off of Dr. Seuss's book On Beyond Zebra, which is about all of the letters that come after Z. In the beginning of the story, Cornelius is bragging that he knows all of the letters from A to Z.
He's shocked to find out that there are more! "Then he almost fell flat on his face on the floor, when I picked up some chalk and drew one letter more. A letter he never had dreamed of before..." like the letter Snee, which is for "...sneedle, a terrible kind of ferocious mos-keedle. Whose hum-dinger stinger is as sharp as a needle. "
All of these goofy letters have a name and symbol. I thought it would be fun to make a class book of all of the pretend letters that might possibly come before the letter A.
Run off copies of the inside page and have students think up a letter, design it, and then give an example of something that starts with that letter, finishing up with an illustration. After students share their work, collect the pages, collate and make into a class book.
Another interesting writing prompt, has to do with Seuss's book If I Ran The Circus.
The packet includes a class book with two writing prompts to choose from, as well as a 3D cylinder "craftivity."
Students color and cut out their circus tent and then attach their completed writing prompt paper to either side, so that they can bend it into a cylinder shape.
The photo shows the various views of a completed project. Punch holes on either side, add a yarn loop and suspend from the ceiling.
For that finishing touch, children add a toothpick flag, and then choose either a clown or a ringmaster to color and glue their photo on top of that face, so that it looks as if they are peeking out of the tent flap.
Two more writing prompt "craftivities" go along with Seuss's book, Oh The Places You'll Go. Ironically, this was the last book published before his death in 1991.
On the large bucket, students think of 5 places they want to visit.
They write the place, followed by what they want to see or do there.
On the small bucket, students think of all of the things they'd like to do.
This can be for the month, year, in 5,10,20 years, or a list of all that they want to accomplish in their lifetime. Completed projects make terrific bulletin boards.
I've also designed a 3-dimensional "Oh the Places You'll Go" writing prompt balloon, which features 3 simple prompts younger students can do: "My favorite place to go is _________. " "A place I'd like to go is _________." and "A place I've been is ________."
Run the basket template off on brown construction paper. For that finishing touch, students glue their photograph inside.
This is one of those "awwww-dorble" keepsake activities that mommies are especially fond of.
Another one is the Lucky Ducky writing prompt craftivity, which was inspired by Seuss's book Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are?
To read more about it, and grab this sweet FREEBIE, click on the link.
Finally, after reading Dr. Seuss's book, What Was I Scared Of? discuss what kinds of things people are afraid of, and how they can overcome their fears.
The packet includes a class book writing prompt, as well as a more advanced writing prompt for older students. There's also a list of 19 quotes about fear. Share a few in discussion, or have students choose their favorite and comment on it, including why they like it and if they agree with it.
The book, The Little Old Lady Who Wasn't Afraid of Anything, by Linda Williams, is a wonderful comparison story, and offers more opportunities for writing and discussion. I've included a Venn diagram to help students compare and contrast these two stories.
Well that's it for today. If you're undecided, why not give your students a choice. You may be surprised to find that they want to do more than one! Time for me to go do some writing of my own. Wishing you an imaginative day filled with wonder.
"Fill your pages with the breathings of your heart." -William Wordsworth
