Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss Celebration

Andrea Byerly
Tuesday, February 20, 2024 12:00 AM
Community, All, Events

CLEVELAND, TN – Cleveland State Community College will host the 20th annual Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss Celebration on Saturday, March 2. The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Cleveland State’s Library and is sponsored by the Early Childhood Education (ECED) program and the CSCC Library.

This year’s event will honor the book There’s a Wocket in My Pocket. Originally published in 1974, the story features a little boy talking about the strange creatures that live in his house. Children attending will be able to participate in both active and artistic activities related to the feature story as well as Dr. Seuss’s most popular books. Special guests will include Dr. Seuss’s most well-known characters, the Cat in the Hat, Thing One and Thing Two from the Cat in the Hat and the Grinch from The Grinch Who Stole Christmas.

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss is free to children of all ages; however, all children must be accompanied by an adult. Each child will receive a goody bag, a hardback Dr. Seuss book and may participate in literacy-related activities assisted by Cleveland State students. Other activities will include face painting, hat making, egg decorating, chalk art, fishing, digging for worms, and music and movement. Refreshments and door prizes will also be part of the celebration.

The event is sponsored by the United Way of the Ocoee Region, Wacker Polysilicon and the Kiwanis Club of Cleveland. Members of the Kiwanis Club will give a free Dr. Seuss book to every child that attends. There will be hardback books for preschoolers, board books for infants and toddlers, and books in Spanish.

A representative from Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library will be on hand. The Imagination Library is a nonprofit organization that promotes early childhood literacy by giving free age-appropriate books to children from birth to age five around the country.

The celebration is organized by students in the ECED 2380 Language and Literacy and ECED 2365 Final Practicum classes. The Early Childhood Education Program at Cleveland State began in 1999 out of an initiative from the Tennessee Board of Regents requiring that all community colleges in the state have an early childhood program. The program is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Cleveland State has transfer agreements with many area colleges that allow students to transfer and complete their degree to teach pre-K through third grade. The Early Childhood Education program provides a foundation and degrees for future teachers interested in teaching birth through grade 12.

“We look forward to another great event with our community families in celebrating literacy and education with our children through a fun and exciting event at the Cleveland State library,” said Dr. Ryan Thompson, Dean of Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences.

Those interested in more information about the Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss event or the Education Career Community should contact Margaret Horten at (423) 473-2371 or mhorten@clevelandstatecc.edu.

Photo Cutline: The oldest civic organization in Cleveland, the Kiwanis Club of Cleveland, recently donated $2700 to Cleveland State for the Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss event. Pictured left to right: Lee McChesney, CSCC Director of Advancement; Margaret Horten, CSCC Education Career Community Director; Chuck Evans, Kiwanis Club President; and Dr. Ray Brooks, CSCC Interim President.