T h e Los A L A m os N AT i o N A L B A N k PoPejoy Schooltime SerieS T e Ac h i N g g u i d e D c EE Tm H SR A RA C

Presented by Childsplay of ArizonaTuesday, April 18, 2017

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Dreamcatchers Teaching Guides align with the Common Core State Standards and New Mexico State Learning Standards.

Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat Teaching guide Dreamcatchers 2

Adapted and originally directed by Katie Mitchell

Play originally produced by the National Theatre of Great Britain

Dr. Seuss text, character and images TM and © 2009 Dr. Seuss Enterprises, L.P.

SynopsisFrom the moment a strange cat in a tall, red-and-white-striped hat appears at

their door, Sally and her brother Sam know that the dreary rainy afternoon will be

transformed. Assuring them their Mom won’t mind, The Cat in The Hat proceeds

to make a great big mess! Soon, he causes mischief and mayhem in his attempts

to amuse the children. Then, he brings in two more strangers, Thing One and Thing

Two for even more fun! But Mom is soon on her way home—what to do? Sally and

Sam have different rules about what is right and wrong and they have had enough of

the Cat’s bad behavior! They all madly scramble to clean up the mess so Mom won’t

know anything happened. Should they tell her?

Today you are you! That is truer than true! There is no one alive who is you-er than you!

– Dr. SEuSS ‘‘Standards Addressed By Attending the Performance

NmccssSL.1

New mexico content

standards Fine Arts/Theatre,

Music & Dance/

Standard 3

Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat Teaching guide Dreamcatchers 3

Vocabularybalancing — having the right amount — not too much or too little — of any quality, which leads to harmony or evenness

ball — an object with a spherical or round shape

bump — an impact (as from a collision)

cat — feline mammal usually having thick soft fur

creativity — the ability to create and think “outside of the box”

fear — an emotion in anticipation of pain or danger

fish — cold-blooded, aquatic vertebrates

hat — headdress that protects the head from weather or is for fashion

imagination — refers to the process of forming images or concepts in the mind, often images of things that are not really there

responsibility — something you’re required to do as an upstanding member of a community

rhyming — having corresponding sounds especially terminal sounds

trick — a cunning or deceitful action or device

wish — an expression of some desire or inclination

Fun Facts for StudentsThe book, The Cat in the Hat, has 1626 words. Divide that by a vocabulary of 236 to determine that each word was used 7 times on average.

Only one word has 3 syllables. 14 words have 2 syllables, and the rest have only one. Can you find the one word with 3 syllables?

The two compound words are the longest words in the book: “playthings” and “something.”

The book, The Cat in the Hat, has 61 pages. Compare that to today’s picture books, which tend to only to have 28.

The 50 words used in the book are: a, am, and, anywhere, are, be, boat, box, car, could, dark, do, eat, eggs, fox, goat, good, green, ham, here, house, I, if, in, let, like, may, me, mouse, not, on, or, rain, Sam, say, see, so, thank, that, the, them, there, they, train, tree, try, will, with, would, you.

The Cat in the Hat is Dr. Seuss’ most popular book. Both The Cat in the Hat, published in 1957, and Green Eggs and Ham, published in 1960, were big sellers. How the Grinch Stole Christmas! is the third most popular Dr. Seuss book in the uS and the tongue-twisting Fox in Socks is third in the uK. The Cat in the Hat Comes Back and the counting book One Fish Two Fish are also near the top of the table.

It’s estimated that one in four American children read a book by Dr. Seuss before any other book.

Dr. Seuss’ real name was Theodore Seuss Geisel. “Seuss” was his mother’s maiden name. He started using it as a pseudonym when he was a university student. He added the Dr. later, as a joke, because his father had always wanted him to get a doctorate and become a professor.

Dr. Seuss never had children, and some claim that Dr. Seuss never even liked them. His widow, Audrey, said in an interview that he was slightly afraid of them.

The Cat In The Hat, took Dr. Seuss nine months to write!

Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat Teaching guide Dreamcatchers 4

Objectives

Materials • chalk board/poster board/butcher paper• chalk/paper/pencil/pen• notebook paper

Procedure 1. Have the students sit in a circle.

2. read out one of the words below

and see how many words they can

come up with that rhyme with:

cat

fish

dog

fed

kit

cap

pop

day

hat

one

two

3. Keep the words visible for the next step of the poem.

4. Depending on the age of your class, have them write “the cat in the hat” down the left side of their notebook paper with one letter on each descending line. If the children are too young, write it on the chalkboard.

5. Instruct them not to leave blank spaces between words.

6. Explain the concept of an acrostic poem if this is new to them.

7. Explain that they will use each of the letters to begin a line of poetry.

8. Each line must follow a rhyming pattern (of your choice).

9. The poem will tell a story from beginning, middle, to end.

10. The younger students can do this as a class.

11. Older students can do this individually.

12. When students finish, share the poems with the rest of the class.

Modifications

Assessment

Students will:

• write a rhyming acrostic poem using “the cat in the hat” as the beginning letters.

• Older students may pick a character from the book or use the name “Dr. Seuss” from which to build their poem.

• Divide the class in half. Have a master paper with the acrostic phrase or word on it. Have each group pass it around with each student taking one line and adding to a group poem. Have the two (or more) groups read theirs aloud. Compare and contrast.

• Have students write a rhyming acrostic poem using their names. Illustrate and share.

The Cat In The Hat Acrostic Poem lesson 1 Grades 1-3

NmccssrF.1, rL.4, SL.1, W.5, W.6

An acrostic poem is where the first letters of each line spell out the word or phrase of choice.

• Quality of participation

Source

Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat Teaching guide Dreamcatchers 5

Grades PreK - 2 Nmccss

rL.1

objectives

materials • white paper

• large construction paper

• contact paper

• black sharpie marker

• glass gems or plastic letters

• plastic fish bowl or container

• copy of the The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss

• water container

• measuring cup

• crayons, colored pencils, etc.

Procedure 1. With your students, gather the letters of the alphabet. You can use plastic letters or you can create your own by using round glass pieces that are flat on the bottom and available at all hobby shops and dollar stores. Write a letter on each piece.

2. Lay them out together in a row in ABC order verbalizing the letters and the sounds that they make.

3. Create an alphabet play mat for them to match the letters (a sample of all the letters to use as a template).

Practice before adding the water play to the activity.

4. Place letters into the fishbowl.

5. (optional) Allow your students to fill up the fishbowl with water. use a larger container and then have students take turns using a measuring cup to pour the water into the fishbowl. Set up in a space that can get wet.

6. using inspiration from the book, have the students draw a fish to add

to the outside of your water bowl. Encourage them to color the fish.

7. Tape the fish on the outside of the bowl & cover with clear contact paper. If you’d rather print the fish out, here’s a resource for Dr. Seuss’ Coloring Pages.

8. Encourage your students to take turns finding the letters in the fishbowl and placing them onto the alphabet play mat to help work on letter recognition.

extensions/modifications

Assessment

Students will:

• use fine motor skills and eye-hand coordination. • learn letters of the alphabet and some beginning word families.

• If you have readers, have them place the letters onto rhyming books from the story. Do this before adding water to the fishbowl.

• Quality of participation

Alphabet Fishbowllesson 2

Source

Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat Teaching guide Dreamcatchers 6

Questions to Engage & ConnectAfter seeing the show, ask

your students to answer these questions:

How was the play similar to the book? How was it

different?

What is trust? Would you have trusted the cat?

When can you trust strangers? What if they’re a

teacher, or a policeman?

Is it okay that the Cat made a mess?

Since the Cat cleaned up his mess, was it okay that

he made it?

What makes something wrong?

Who decides if something is wrong?

Should we tell the truth, even

if no one believes us?

If you tell someone only part of what happened, is

that lying?

Which character did you identify with and why?

What was your favorite part of the play?

Bonus Explorations Rhyming Challenge

“Cat” rhymes with “hat” and what else? use the stripes in the Cat’s hat to write down words that rhyme with “cat.” A good template can be found here or there are others to choose from here. We know the cat’s hat is red and white but color it however you want to!

Act It Out

Working in your own space, and using just your body and your imagination, explore different ways to move! Shake with fear, tip your hat, catch something with a net, fly a kite, clean up a mess, move like a cat, move like a fish, move like a “Thing.” What are some other ways characters from the play moved? Try those, too! Then, as a class, read the book (or parts of it). Discuss which parts of the book would be fun to dramatize. Divide into small groups, pick a scene and play it out. Share with another class.

The Cleaning Machine Tableaux & Movement

using bodies, create a cleaning machine like the one the Cat used. One person starts by choosing a movement and a sound for their part of the machine. Then others add on one at a time becoming a different part of the machine. Place some objects around the room and work together to clean them up. See if you can start the machine up and then slow it down and stop.

ResourcesBooks

A link to a complete list of Dr. Seuss books.

What does a Dr. Seuss dictionary look like? Take a look.

Websites

Learn more about any Dr. Seuss character.

Enjoy this link to activities, coloring pages, paper crafts, lyrics, games, and more!

Print a “word cloud” of all the words used in The Cat in the Hat.

Videos

A mini bio on Dr. Suess.

Watch Dr. Seuss’ cartoon “Sneetches”.

Short cartoon clips of different Dr. Seuss stories.

About the Author Dr. Seuss is known worldwide as the imaginative master of children’s literature. His books include a wonderful blend of invented and actual words, and his rhymes have helped many children and adults better their understanding of the English language. Theodor Seuss Geisel, “Ted” to his friends and Dr. Seuss to his many fans, wrote and drew pictures for most of his life, publishing his first children’s book, And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street, in 1937. Twenty years later, he wrote a book called Why Johnny Can’t Read and a published article of the same name, claiming that most books and illustrations intended for children were boring and unimaginative. In response, two publishing companies gave Dr. Seuss a challenge: use 220 vocabulary words for new readers to write a dynamic children’s book. Thus, The Cat in the Hat was created.

About the CompanyFounded in 1977, ChildsplayAZ is a nationally and internationally respected professional theater company whose chosen audience is children. Their mission is: “To create theatre so strikingly original in form, content or both that it instills in young people an enduring awe, love, and respect for the medium, thus preserving imagination and wonder, those hallmarks of childhood that are the keys to the future.”

SchooltimeSER IES

POPEJOY••••••••••••

About the Schooltime SeriesThe Los Alamos National Bank Popejoy Schooltime Series brings you national and international touring companies and performers you can’t see anywhere else in or around Albuquerque. Each touring company is selected with youth and family audiences in mind, and our repertoire reflects the cultural diversity of our global community. The Schooltime Series includes new plays, familiar stories, literary works, biographies, mythologies, folk tales, music, dance, and puppetry. These professional performing artists create educational experiences designed to encourage literacy, creativity, communication, and imagination.

Send an email with your name and email address to schooltime@popejoypresents.com requesting to be added to the mailing and monthly newsletter list. Visit us at schooltimeseries.com and facebook.com/schooltimeseries.

Popejoy HallPopejoy Hall is New Mexico’s premier nonprofit venue for the performing arts and entertainment. Our mission is to provide access to the performing arts for all New Mexicans.

EtiquetteThe inside of a theatre is called a “house” and to get along, have fun, and enjoy the shows, there are rules to follow. Schooltime provides a wonderful opportunity to learn how good behavior in a live theater is different from watching television at home. For guidelines to practice with your class and chaperones go to schooltimeseries.com/house-policies.

House PoliciesPlease visit our website for detailed information about House Policies. This includes our guidelines on safety, special needs, food and drink, backpacks, cell phones, photography, recordings, and more.

Credits Dreamcatchers are Teaching Guides produced by the Education Department of Popejoy Hall, Albuquerque, New Mexico. Selected Dreamcatchers Teaching Guide materials provided by ChildsplayAZ, Seussville, Best Children’s Books, vocabulary.com, teachingchildrenphilosophy.org, and other resources noted within this guide.

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The University of New MexicoThe Los Alamos National Bank Popejoy Schooltime Series is a program of The university of New Mexico.

the Schooltime Series is a proud member of

the lANB Popejoy Schooltime Series is supported in part by

awards from:

The Eugene and Marion Castiglia Popejoy Children’s

Schooltime Endowment

The Popejoy Schooltime Education Endowment