1. AGENDA 3.5.2014
• Dr. Seuss Trivia
• Teaching With Folk Literature- Stephanie
• Digital Story Telling- Christina
• Literature Circle Led by Amy
• Modern Fantasy vs. Science Fiction
2. What is Dr. Seuss‟s Real
Name?
Born Theodor Geisel in 1904 in Springfield, MA
3. Where Did the Seuss come
from in Dr. Seuss?
Full name…. Theodor Seuss Geisel
Actually pronounced /soice/ not /soose/
It was his mother‟s maiden name
Never held a doctorate degree…Used Dr. as a tribute to his
father‟s wish for him to earn his doctorate from Oxford.
Used as his pen name during college after being prohibited
from writing for the school publication because of breaking
prohibition laws while student at Dartmouth University
4. Who did Seuss design ads for before
he became an author?
In the late 1920s, Standard Oil hired Theodor Geisel to
create a number of advertisements for its insecticide,
Flit.
5. What was the Title of Dr. Seuss‟s First
Published Book?
In 1937, Mr. Geisel and his wife, Helen, were returning to the
United States from an ocean trip to Europe when the rhythmic
sound of the ship's engine suggested to him the idea of writing an
equally rhythmic text for a children's book.
After sending the book manuscript to nearly 30 publishers (and
receiving an equal number of rejections), Vanguard Press finally
agreed to publish the book.
6. What Word Did Dr. Seuss Invent?
NERD!
The book was published in 1950.
7. What Is Dr. Seuss‟s Best
Selling Title?
The book Green Eggs and Ham only contains 50
different words.
Dr. Seuss wrote the book based on a bet. A
publisher at Random House bet him $50 that he
couldn’t write a book using 50 words or less.
Dr. Seuss won the bet!
8. Which Dr. Seuss Book Made the ALA‟s Annual
List of Banned and Challenged Books?
The Lorax is about a woodland creature (the Lorax) that lives among
the trees. The Once-ler is a little creature that cuts down trees and
uses them for multiple uses. The Lorax quickly realizes that the
Once-ler is killing the forest and so the Lorax persuades him to stop
cutting down trees.
The Lorax was banned because it portrays the foresting industry in
an arguable negative way. Some people felt that this book was
persuading children to be against logging.
9. Name one of awards that Dr. Seuss won during
his career?
Pulitzer Prize in1984. “for his contribution over nearly half a century to the
education and enjoyment of America‟s children and their parents.”
An Academy award for “Gerald McBoing-Boing” (Best Cartoon, 1951).
An Emmy for “Halloween is Grinch Night” (Best Children‟s Special, 1977),
and “The Grinch Grinches the Cat” (Best Children‟s Special, 1982)
A Peabody for the animated specials, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas!”
and “Horton Hears a Who!”, 1971
He never received a Newberry or Caldecott medal for any of his works.
10. Who is the Character “The Grinch”
Based on?
Dr. Seuss himself!
As he said in December 1957, just after How the Grinch Stole
Christmas! was published, “I was brushing my teeth on the morning
of the 26th of last December when I noted a very Grinchish
countenance in the mirror. It was Seuss! Something had gone wrong
with Christmas, I realized, or more likely with me. So I wrote the
story about my sour friend, the Grinch, to see if I could rediscover
something about Christmas that obviously I’d lost.”
Seuss’s license plate would later read “GRINCH.”
11. If Dr. Seuss Was Still Alive, How Old
Would He Be This Birthday?
110 years old!
12. A Few More Interesting Dr. Seuss
Items!
Dr. Seuss wrote and illustrated forty-four that have been translated into fifteen different
languages.
Thirty of those books have been adapted for TV or a movie.
Two hundred million copies were sold by the time he died.
Though famous for his children‟s books, “You‟re Only Old Once”, subtitled „A Book for
Obsolete Children‟, written for adults, was published in 1986. It made the New York
Times adult best-seller list and thirteen hundred people stood in line at a New York
bookstore to get his autograph on the book.
“The Butter Battle Book” was introduced at his eightieth birthday celebration. One of his
more controversial books because of its similarities to current military events, it was
written to raise awareness of the dangers of nuclear weapons. It had the honor of being
the only children‟s book to appear for six months on the New York Times best-seller list
for adults.
Dr. Seuss has a star on the Hollywood walk of fame
Married twice, he never had children of his own. His wife once said that children
“frightened him”.
13. His friends and family called him Ted.
He had other pen names which include:
Theo LeSieg (“Geisel” spelled backwards), Rossetta Stone, Theophrastus
Seuss
Seuss was a practical joker who liked to tweak his editors. His editor
Michael Frith recalls receiving a draft page for Dr. Seuss’s ABC, in which
Seuss drew a large-breasted woman and the following verse: “Big X, little
x. X, X, X. / Someday, kiddies, you will learn about SEX.” That does not
appear in the book. Seuss was just making sure that Frith was paying
attention.
The Cat in the Hat was written as a result of a 1954 report published
in Life magazine about illiteracy among school children. A text-book editor
at a publishing company was concerned about the report and
commissioned Ted to write a book which would appeal to children learning
to read, using only 250 words given to him by the editor.
My Many Colored Days and The Bipplo Seed and Other Stories were
written by Dr. Seuss and published after his death.
15. Modern Fantasy vs. Science
Fiction Sort
Cut out each box
Read the idea in each box (book
title, category, author or information)
Decide if it describes modern fantasy
or science fiction
Sort each idea accordingly
