A Hatful of Seuss

Children participate in arts and crafts activities at last year’s Read Across America event. This year, YSEA will celebrate The Cat in the Hat’s 57th birthday on March 1 and will hold Read Across America events on March 3.
Children participate in arts and crafts activities at last year’s Read Across America event. This year, YSEA will celebrate The Cat in the Hat’s 57th birthday on March 1 and will hold Read Across America events on March 3.

Members of the Youngstown Student Education Association, YSEA, will be reading Dr. Seuss books and participating in activities with children on March 1 to honor The Cat in the Hat’s 57th birthday.

The event will be held in Beeghly Hall’s McKay Auditorium and will begin at 12 p.m.

James MacGregor, vice president of YSEA, anticipates a significant number of participating students and volunteers for this event.

“Its nice to see such a group of people get together and have a great time. I’ll be making green eggs this year (also known as green slime) and I can’t wait to get messy,” MacGregor said.

Kelsey Wormley, historian and president of YSEA, is in charge of activity planning. She said YSEA is adding new stations and changing up some of the crafts at stations they had in the previous years.

“This year, we are trying to switch up the activities so that the children that attended last year can have just as much fun, if not more, than they did last year,” she said.

The six stations that will be set up at the event will be themed after several Dr. Seuss books, including “Green Eggs & Ham,” “The Lorax,” “Put Me in The Zoo,” “One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish” and “If I Ran the Circus.” There will also be a parents’ station.

The activities planned for the afternoon will include making green slime, planting, various crafts, fishing and face painting. At the parents’ station, parents will be given activities and tips on reading to take home.

The goal of the event is to show America’s children the joy of reading on March 1 and every day. All students receive a T-shirt, books and certificate for attending.

YSEA, an organization for education majors that promotes literacy, is the local chapter of the Ohio Student Education Association, Ohio Education Association and the National Education Association.

YSEA facilitates a variety of events to offer Youngstown State University students experience in their area of study. In honor of Dr. Seuss’ birthday, YSEA will take part in the NEA’s nationwide reading program.

The NEA is known for building a nation of readers through the program called Read Across America. Read Across America is now in its 17th year and focuses on motivating children and teens to understand the importance of reading. Read Across America Day is usually held on March 2, Dr. Seuss’ birthday, but is scheduled for March 3 this year.

Crystal Hawthorne, adviser of YSEA, said Read Across America — which has been around since 2007 — encourages the nation to honor Dr. Seuss and celebrates the joy and value of reading. Read Across America has also contributed to the social awareness of the university and community by allowing different cultures to come together to embrace a common goal — reading.

“The Youngstown Student Education Association sponsors the event on campus and brings a nation of readers together under one hat — the red and white stovepipe made famous by the Cat in the Hat — for a flurry of reading excitement,” Hawthorne said.

MacGregor said Read Across America, and their March 1 reading event advocates growth within the community and YSU.

“It also shows these young students that people of all ages and even the older students still love reading these classic stories,” he said. “Read Across America is a positive interactive experience. I’m glad I can be a part of something so great in our community.”