In celebration of Dr. Seuss’s birthday and his achievements in children’s literature, members of the Early Learning Coalition of Santa Rosa County visited several early education programs throughout the county in celebration of National Education Association’s ‘Read Across America’ event.
The week-long event began with a celebration of Dr. Seuss’s birthday on Monday, should Seuss still be the famous author and illustrator would have turned 111. Seuss died in 1991. Read across America not only celebrate the legacy of Dr. Seuss but also encourages reading at an early age.
In addition to reading the Dr. Seuss classic “The Cat in the Hat,” representatives from the Coalition dressed as the book’s main character and ‘Thing 1’ and ‘Thing 2.’ The representatives also presented each Voluntary Prekindergarten school with a certificate of the special occasion and a few copies of Dr. Seuss’s popular books.
Monday’s visit from the representatives from the Early Learning Coalition representatives Whitney Shuler, Kim Hauth and Sandy Peloke, helped expose children in the VPK program Capstone Milton Childcare Center to Dr. Seuss.
“This does help with the pre reading skills,” said Joannie Broussard, the VPK’s assistant director and VPK teacher. “We always stress reading, books are always offered (to children).”
Broussard, who was thankful for the Coalition’s visit, said Dr. Seuss continues to be an “inspiration” to children through his literary work.
“He was a great inspiration,” she said. “He knew what he was doing.”
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Early education programs celebrate Dr. Seuss with ‘Read Across America’