In March we celebrate Theodor Geisel’s (aka Dr. Seuss’s) birthday. Dr. Seuss created some of the most iconic characters in children’s literature, developed stories unlike anything that had been written before him, and inspired thousands of kids to love reading. If you have kids or grandchildren, or plan to have kids or grandchildren, please please make sure they are exposed to Dr. Seuss in their early years. I have gathered up just a few of my essential Dr. Seuss to help you build your collection.
MY ESSENTIAL DR SEUSS FOR KIDS
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THE BEST DR. SEUSS MOVIES
As theater length Seuss movies go, The Lorax is pretty enjoyable. The animation is faithful to the book, and the songs help to keep my kids engaged.
Please, note here that I am recommending the ORIGINAL How the Grinch Stole Christmas movie, not the Jim Carrey abomination. The original short movie narrated by Boris Karloff is the one you want.
GREAT DR. SEUSS GAMES
While I don’t think flashcards are the best way to teach your kids their alphabet, they do have their place. These Seuss Flashcards are at least colorful and fun to use.
Both of my kids loved this Fox in Socks Floor Puzzle. To them, it’s incredibly ginormous, so it feels like a major accomplishment putting the whole thing together. Fox in Socks is one of our favorite Seuss books, but you can find large floor puzzles featuring your favorite Seuss characters too.
DR. SEUSS BEDROOM OR CLASSROOM DECOR
I used these Dr Seuss Character Door Decorations for my daughter’s Seuss birthday party a few years back, and we still have the decorations up on the walls of our toy room.
If you are worried about using tape or tacks to keep your Seuss wall decor up, these Dr Seuss Removable Wall Clings feature lots of beloved characters. They are pricier than the cardstock version, however.
MY FAVORITE DR. SEUSS BOOKS
As your children get a little older, keep their interest in Dr. Seuss going. The Who Was… series of biographies does a good job of making historical figures accessible for kids. Who Was Dr. Seuss? is a chapter book your child can read himself or that you can read together.
When it comes to Dr. Seuss’s own books, you can’t really go wrong with any of them. These are my absolute favorites, but I haven’t found a Seuss book that wasn’t worth buying. I would suggest that you spend your money on the actual full-length books rather than the shortened board books. The board books fit in a diaper bag better than the larger ones, but even the littlest kid can sit through a whole Dr. Seuss book and maintain interest.
If you are starting your Dr. Seuss collection from scratch the Beginner Book Collection is a great way to start. It includes the five Seuss books (Cat in the Hat, One Fish Two Fish, Green Eggs and Ham, Hop on Pop and Fox in Socks) that every child should have read to them. It’s slightly cheaper to buy this collection instead of buying them all individually.
This is the only alphabet book I actually enjoy reading to my kids. Usually ABC books are so focused on cramming as many A word pictures on the page as they can, that they forget the fun! Dr. Seuss’ A B C is hilarious, and sometimes nonsensical, and it has a super catchy, driving rhythm. BTW, if you are reading the R page as anything other than “Rosy’s going riding on her red rhinocerOSS,” you are doing it wrong.
Oh, the Thinks You Can Think usually gets overlooked while Oh, the Places You’ll Go gets all the attention. While OTPYG does make a great graduation gift, Oh, the Thinks You Can Think has an equally awesome message for little kids and big kids alike.
If you have kids under the age of 10 and you do not already own The Sleep Book, buy it now. I have not found any other book that helps kids calm their little bodies and minds before sleep better than this book. The slow, steady rhyming rhythm, the increasingly subdued colors, the frequent mentions of yawns (which will probably make you and your child yawn too!) ease children into bedtime. It is almost magical. Try it, you’ll see.
What is YOUR favorite Dr. Seuss book?
YOU MIGHT LIKE THESE SEUSS DIYS TOO:
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