Every March 1^st, schools across country celebrate “Read Across America Day”! We are celebrating the creative writer of children’s books, Theodore Seuss Gisel, a.k.a Dr. Seuss. Theodore was born in 1904 and died in 1991 at the age of 87. Theodore, better know as “Ted” to his friends, was a magazine cartoonist who officially took the professional pseudonym Dr. Seuss in 1928, and gained fame creating advertising slogans and cartoons.

In 1937 Dr. Seuss wrote his first book “And to Think I Saw it on Mulberry St.”. It was twenty years later in 1957 that he wrote his 13^th book, “The Cat in the Hat”. All together, Dr. Seuss wrote and illustrated 44 children’s books, leaving behind a great legacy of fun books for generations to come. The rhyming words and zany characters in Seuss’ books are sure to draw in a child’s imagination and interest to read his stories, hopefully planting seeds to become a life long reader!

Each year during Read Across America Week, we invite a city official from the city of Bedford to tell our students how they use reading every day in their job.  This year we invited our mayor, Shawna Girgis. She told our students about how she reads everyday to prepare to be the Mayor and make decisions for our city.  She then had the children take the National Education Association’s ” Reader’s Oath”. Before giving the oath, she explains that taking an oath is giving a promise that each child will do their best to become good readers.

The Reader’s Oath

I promise to read each day and each night.
I know it’s the key to growing up right.

I’ll read to myself, I’ll read to a crowd.
It makes no difference if silent or loud.

I’ll read at my desk, at home and at school,
On my bean bag or bed, by the fire or pool.

Each book that I read puts smarts in my head,
‘Cause brains grow more thoughts the more they are fed.

So I take this oath to make reading my way
Of feeding my brain what it needs every day.

Over the years I have written several songs for Read Across America week that my students love. “We Love Dr. Seuss“, “Go Fish“- based on “One Fish Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish” and “Wild Things” based on Thing 1 and Thing 2 from “The Cat in the Hat” are favorites with both students and teachers. You can find both sheet music and instrumental track for these songs in the website store. We are singing all of these songs this week in my classes, and I hope you like them too!

“You have brains in your head.  You have feet in your shoes.  You can steer yourself any direction you choose.  You’re on your own.  And you know what you know.  And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go…

-Dr. Seuss – “Oh the Places You’ll Go!”