Tuesday, August 14, 2007

THE CAT IN THE HAT 50TH BIRTHDAY PROGRAM



On March 24th, 2007, 45 children and their parents, grandparents, and caregivers converged on the Community Room of the Bucyrus Public Library for a program honoring the 50th birthday of Dr. Seuss's beloved character, The Cat in the Hat.

As each participant arrived, he or she was given a hat-shaped nametag (Ellison hat die) with a red-and-white CITH sticker attached. Participants also placed their names into a drawing for door prizes, which were given away later in the program.

Children's Librarian Barb Scott opened the program by presenting a short Powerpoint presentation on Dr. Seuss, his life, and books. Some parents (and grandparents) were not aware that Seuss wrote under the name Theo LeSieg as well. LeSieg is Geisel (Seuss's real last name), only spelled backwards! They also learned that Seuss's first book And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street was almost not published. It was sent to and rejected by 27 different publishers!

At the end of the Powerpoint presentation, participants were released to the craft tables. There were six crafts available to make, with the instructions for the crafts written in--what else--rhyme!. They were:

1. The Cat in the Hat Stick Puppet--Participants colored and then cut out a Cat in the Hat shape and then glued this shape to a craft stick.

2. Hats Off to Reading Door Hanger--This craft came from an older issue of CopyCat magazine. Participants colored and then cut out the doorhanger (shaped like the Cat's hat) and then cut the slit and circle out that allowed the piece to hang over the doorknob.

3. Design You Own Fantabulous Hat!--These kits were puchased for (but not used) the Katie Kazoo program. They can be seen at http://www.handsonfun.com/, part of Oriental Trading Company. Each package of 24 hats had 12 of two different designs. Participants were supplied with crayons, markers, adhesive star stickers, colorful pom poms, feathers, and an assortment of foam shapes (purchased at the local Wal-Mart) with which to decorate the hats.

4. The Cat's Coloring Page--At each program, one craft is used as a display piece along with photos taken of the day's event. This coloring page was found on-line at http://www.thecatinthehat.com/

5. The Cat in the Hat Treat Bag--This craft was found on-line at http://www.dltk-kids.com/
Participants colored and cut out both sides of the treat bag, then glued them together to form a bag to take home their goodie bags in!

6. The Cat in the Hat Toilet Paper Roll Craft--This craft was also found on-line at http://www.dltk-kids.com/ Participants were provided with pieces that made up the Cat's body, head, tie, feet, tail, and hands, along with an example of how to place them on the TP roll.

While participants worked on crafts, music from a CD entitled "Songs of Dr. Seuss and More" played in the background.

Snacks were also served during the program. They consisted of iced cookies, pretzels, fruit snacks, and Goldfish crackers (in honor of the Fish).

Of course, the program would not have been complete without a visit from the guest of honor! He was escorted to a corner which had been set up with a soft sculpture brought in by Barbara Dolch and her husband. The soft sculpture was a life-sized rendering of her husband seated in a chair, holding a Cat in the Hat stuffed toy in one arm and a copy of the book in the other. He sported, among other articles of clothing, a red-and-white striped Cat in the Hat hat! Once in the corner, the Cat (and the sculpture) were available for photos! The Cat was quite a hit with young and old alike!

Each child, before leaving, received a goodie bag that was filled with a Cat in the Hat bookmark, several Cat in the Hat stickers, several Dum-Dum lollipops, and gum.

Drawings were held for door prizes toward the end of the program.

4 comments:

Barb said...

Demco offers a large line of items that can be used for this program.

www.demco.com
1-800-356-1200

Barb said...

Wow! Just received a new catalog today from Raymond Geddes and Company, Inc. today and it has a TON of Dr. Seuss stuff in it! Great things to buy as giveaways for your program! Items include:
Dr. Seuss pencils and erasers (both large and small), blue ink ballpoint pens and 6-color pens, mechanical pencils with stampers, "Sharp 'N' Sweep (like those erasers we used to use for typewriters before White-out), pencil grips, bookmarks (yea!), blank mini books with assorted Dr. Seuss covers, and pencil sharpeners.

It looks to me like they market to schools for school stores, who can then resell the items, but what a great resource for Seuss stuff!

Here is their contact info:

Raymomd Geddes and Company, Inc.
8901 Yellow Brick Road
Baltimore, Maryland 21237
Toll free: 1-888-431-1722
Fax: 1-800-533-3359

If you don't have a catalog, I assume that you can see the items online at their website:

www.raymondgeddes.com

Barb said...

The Raymond Geddes catalog has done it again.....MORE CAT STUFF!

Cool magnetic notepads and dry erase boards, listed under their "Locker Accessories" would make great door prizes for your program!

Coolness!!!

Barb said...

Smilemakers catalog offers serveral Cat-themed items:

Dr. Seuss Hats (red and white Cat in the Hat hats) 32 for $12.99.

3 different bookmarks 36 for $3.99.

Cat in the Hat recognition awards 36 for $3.99

Smilemakers 1-800-825-8085.