Hats, pats as kids get hooked on books

PROVO -- Do you do it without moving your lips? Did you learn how with phonics tips?

Have you done it at your school? Have you done it to be cool?Do you do it before going to bed? Or would you rather play Nintendo instead?

Hoping the Sam-I-Am in "Green Eggs and Ham" can hook the MTV generation, Utah teachers joined the National Education Association Tuesday in a birthday celebration of the madcap mind behind "How the Grinch Stole Christmas."

The event, called "Read Across America," was launched last year to promote reading in schools and to honor the late Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel. He died in 1991.

Geisel's first book, "And To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street," was published in 1937 -- and it changed the world of children's literature forever. Geisel, known worldwide by his middle name, wrote 44 books, won a Pulitzer Prize and two Academy Awards.

Colorful characters and mesmerizing rhymes in Dr. Seuss books help children to read and build character, teachers say. Have a classroom spoilsport? Assign kids to read "How the Grinch Stole Christmas." Need a lesson in flexibility? Whip out "North-Going Zax."

To kick off the event, Utah schools planned to celebrate by throwing costume parties, read-a-thons and eating meals featuring -- what else? -- green eggs and ham.

Orem's Aspen Elementary School students sported top hats made fashionable by "The Cat in the Hat." Some 600 pupils earned the hats by reading 25 days out of the previous month.

On Tuesday, more than 500 students from the Jordan, Granite and Salt Lake school districts participated in a read-a-thon on the second floor of the state Capitol.

Utah's House of Representatives took time out to read with children. Rep. David Cox, R-Lehi, sponsored a "Read Across America" bill in support of the literacy initiative.

Students at Morgan Elementary School in Morgan County were told they could dye their principal's hair green if they read 252,000 minutes in a month.

In the Davis School District, Clinton's mayor, police officers and local weatherman read to students at Clinton Elementary School.

Even baseball great Cal Ripkin, Laker Shaquille O'Neal and songstress Carly Simon volunteered to read to children this week on the playing fields and in recording studios.

"It's absolutely crucial that youngsters be given a foundation in reading if they are going to make progress in education," said NEA President Bob Chase. "That means a real strong commitment from parents and the community to make it happen."