The Cat in The Hat Language Arts Lesson Plan
Teach Writing, Sight Words, Rhyming, Poems and Oral Reading Fluency
Feb 16, 2009
Primary school teachers can use The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss [Random House, 1957] as the basis for a language arts unit. Lessons teaching sight words, rhyming, oral reading fluency, and poetry help students increase their reading and writing skills.
The Cat in The Hat Writing Prompts
Teachers can get students thinking about situations in The Cat in the Hat by having them respond to writing prompts in their reading journals.
- What do you do on a rainy day?
- What could you do to make cleaning up your toys more fun?
- Would you tell your mother if the Cat in the Hat came to your house?
Teach Sight Words with The Cat in the Hat
Dr. Seuss used many primary sight words in his story The Cat in the Hat. Teachers can use the story to introduce and teach new words such as, you or said, to the class. To identify and practice the sight words students can mark them in the story with highlighting tape. The words from the story can then be placed on a classroom word wall to be used in everyday reading and writing.
Teach Rhyming With The Cat in the Hat
The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss is full of rhyming words and sentences. After reading the story teachers can use cats and hats in a learning center to help students practice their rhyming skills. To make the rhyming learning center the teacher writes words from the story on cat cut-outs. Next a word that rhymes with each cat word is written on a hat cut-out. The pairs are placed in a basket and the students match the cat words to the rhyming hat words.
Practice Oral Reading Fluency with The Cat in the Hat
Being able to read fluently increases students’ ability to comprehend text. Students can practice reading The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss with whisper phones to improve oral reading skills.
To make whisper phones teachers can purchase PVC connectors and decorate them with stickers or permanent markers. The students whisper-read the story into the phones and are able to hear what they sound like and make corrections while reading. Whisper phones make repeated readings fun for kids.
Write a Rhyming Poem Using The Cat in the Hat
After primary students read the rhyming sentences in The Cat in the Hat they can write their own rhyming poems. Teachers guide the students to choose one or two pairs of rhyming words and create sentences using them. The poems are then written on an outline of a hat. The students color the hats and the poems are displayed on a class bulletin board.
After students practice their reading and writing skills they can celebrate their accomplishments with a Cat in the Hat cake and maze. On the Seussville website, in the playground section, teachers can use the Find the Cat’s Birthday Hat printable maze and birthday cake recipe for The Cat in the Hat unit’s culminating activity.
For more Dr. Seuss themed lessons read: Dr. Seuss Sound Words Language Arts Lesson Plan, One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish Lesson Plan, and Dr. Seuss Writing and Vocabulary Lesson Plan.
 |
 |
