8 Fun Facts about Dr. Seuss for National Reading Month
March is National Reading Month! This is a time dedicated to motivating people of all ages to read daily and enjoy the benefits of literacy—including boosting analytical thinking and memory.
Our kids at Small Strides are just beginning their literacy journey, which opens them up to the 47 wonderful children’s books by Dr. Seuss. Since it was in honor of his birthday that March was chosen as National Reading Month, here are some fun facts about the beloved children’s author.
1. Seuss wasn’t his last name, and he wasn’t actually a doctor
His real name was Theodor “Ted” Seuss Geisel (Seuss was his mother’s maiden name). He started using the pen name Dr. Seuss in college, after he broke school rules and was stripped of his editorship at Dartmouth’s humor magazine. After this, he started publishing articles under a variety of pseudonyms, including Dr. Seuss.
2. He never had any biological children
Countless kids have benefited from his work, but Dr. Seuss never fathered any of his own. When asked why, he would quip, “You make them, I’ll amuse them.”
3. Dr. Seuss worked in advertising before becoming a children’s author
He wrote copy and drew advertisements for companies such as Standard Oil and Flit bug spray. His most famous advertising slogan was “Quick, Henry, the Flit!”
4. He wrote “Green Eggs and Ham” on a bet
Dr. Seuss’ editor Bennett Cerf bet him he couldn’t write a book using 50 or fewer words. He did it using only these:
a, am, and, anywhere, are, be, boat, box, car, could, dark, do, eat, eggs, fox, goat, good, green, ham, here, house, I, if, in, let, like, may, me, mouse, not, on, or, rain, Sam, say, see, so, thank, that, the, them, there, they, train, tree, try, will, with, would, you
5. Dr. Seuss invented the word “nerd”
In his book “If I Ran the Zoo”, a sign identifies a “nerd” as a red and yellow and white-haired sourpuss. There is no prior documentation of the term, and it rose in popularity after Seuss penned it.
6. He wrote two adult books
“The Seven Lady Godivas: The True Facts Concerning History’s Barest Family” came out in 1939, but it was a flop. And “You’re Only Old Once” came out in 1986.
7. His first book was rejected 27 times before it got published
"And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street” was published in 1937 after all those rejections, which should encourage us to not give up on our dreams.
8. He won two Academy Awards and two Emmys
His Oscars were for a documentary and a short animated film, and he won his Emmys for two different Grinch-inspired children’s specials.
At Small Strides, we love seeing our kids start their love for literacy. Reach out to us for more info on how we set the foundation for reading success.
