Archive for Friday, March 2, 2007

Kindergartners celebrate Dr. Seuss with meal of green eggs and ham

March 2, 2007

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Local elementary students celebrate birthday of Dr. Seuss

It's not unusual to see green foods in a school cafeteria - but green eggs and ham? Kids from Eudora's Nottingham Elementary enjoyed the famous dish to honor Dr. Seuss' 103rd birthday. Enlarge video

Kindergartners from Nottingham Elementary School in Eudora listen to Eudora High School sophomore Derek Scrimsher read Dr. Seuss' "Green Eggs and Ham" during a birthday celebration for the famous author. The students also ate green eggs and ham prepared by a culinary arts class at the Eudora-De Soto Technical Education Center in Eudora.

Kindergartners from Nottingham Elementary School in Eudora listen to Eudora High School sophomore Derek Scrimsher read Dr. Seuss' "Green Eggs and Ham" during a birthday celebration for the famous author. The students also ate green eggs and ham prepared by a culinary arts class at the Eudora-De Soto Technical Education Center in Eudora.

Bobby Lounsbury, left, and Cecelia Baise, kindergartners from Nottingham Elementary School, celebrate the birthday of Dr. Seuss by eating green eggs and ham and listening to the book of the same name.

Bobby Lounsbury, left, and Cecelia Baise, kindergartners from Nottingham Elementary School, celebrate the birthday of Dr. Seuss by eating green eggs and ham and listening to the book of the same name.

Autumn Foster was singing and swaying as she waited at the table with her friends.

"Green eggs and ham, green eggs and ham," Autumn sang quietly. "I like mine fried, nice and brown. I like mine turned upside down."

She finished the final verse doing some hand gestures: "Flip 'em, flop 'em, don't drop 'em."

Autumn was among about 120 kindergartners from Eudora's Nottingham Elementary School who took part in an annual event Thursday - a feast of green eggs and ham in honor of the Dr. Seuss book of the same name.

"We've been doing this for 10 years. It helps us teach rhyme to the kids," said John Woodward, a kindergarten teacher who originally had parents serve up the green fare at the school.

But three years ago, Woodward asked Jason Gray, who teaches high school culinary classes, to help with the cooking.

Since then, Gray has incorporated the event to honor the memory of the late Theodor Seuss Geisel, whose birthday is today, into a culinary arts class for high school students from Eudora, De Soto and Lawrence.

The older students get practice planning, cooking and serving a banquet meal. And the kindergartners get to go on a field trip to the Eudora-De Soto Technical Education Center to get a taste of one of Dr. Seuss' best books.

Dressed as Seuss' Cat in the Hat, Derek Scrimsher, a Eudora sophomore, read "Green Eggs and Ham" to the kindergartners.

And then the feast began.

How were the green eggs and ham? Some students took a taste and pushed them away.

But others were more adventurous. Some even ended up with green tongues.

Bobby Lounsbury held up a fork of green ham, smiling as his mother snapped his photo.

Sitting next to him, Cecelia Baise took another bite of green eggs.

"This is delicious," she said.

Birthday party

Children ages 5 and older are invited to a party this weekend to celebrate the birthday of the late Dr. Seuss and his classic children's book "The Cat in the Hat," which turns 50 this year.

The party, featuring games and activities inspired by Seuss' books, will be from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vt.

Activities are sponsored by the library and by students from Kansas University's English department. Douglas County Extension and the library will be providing treats for the author's 103rd birthday.