Cat's New Hat

Tomorrow afternoon The Big Red Barn is hosting a field trip for an area home-school group. The group of 10-20 students will range from approximately 5 to 12 years of age. My goal is to provide the children with an art activity that is unique, engaging, appropriate and enjoyable for all ages. I was given free choice of what activity to do with the children, and after a bit of thinking and brainstorming, I decided on a lesson featuring one of our favorite inspirations: Dr. Seuss.  

Last summer, Hammond's Miller Memorial Library used Dr. Seuss as the theme for their summer program. For years, I have volunteered as a guest presenter/teacher at Miller Memorial library and provided art lessons for the children there (usually based on their specified theme). Dr. Seuss' work always provides teachers with a wealth of creative ideas; his blend of wonderful stories, characters, and unique artwork presents a rich variety of ideas to explore and emulate.

 I created a lesson, The Cat's New Hat, specifically for the Miller Memorial Library class I was teaching. I wrote a poem/story/verse about the cat losing his hat and how we could help him. I read the story aloud, then guided the children through the rest of the lesson, which featured basic drawing, line, color mixing, and painting. It was a fun class that allowed children of many ages to make their hat as simple or as complex as they liked, and also covered several elements of art.

After doing the lesson at Miller Memorial Library, I put The Cat's New Hat story aside and didn't think much of it. Until today. This lesson will be perfect for the group of home-school kids who are coming to The Big Red Barn tomorrow. I hope that they have a great time!

The Cat's New Hat
By: Melissa Durel-Porter
(Please do not use without permission)

The cat in the hat came back, came back,
But no longer had his tall striped hat,
He said I've lost it, no no no,
Won't you help me? Where'd it go?

I said to Mr. Cat, in no hat,
I don't know where your hat is at,
But I can help you, yes I can,
Let's make one with our new friends.

"Yes," said the cat, "what a great idea!"
And that's what brings you all right here.
We'll make a hat for dear old Cat,
A hat just right for The Cat in the Hat.

Let's start with some lines of different kinds:
Thick ones, thin ones, and others we find.
Crooked, straight, zig zag, and wavy,
Dashes, dots, mixed up and crazy.

Now, that cat likes tricks, he does he does-
So let's do some with our own paintbrush.
We'll take some yellow, red, and blue
And see what magic they can do.

Mix some blue, mix some red-
We've got purple for Cat's head.
Yellow and red, yellow and blue-
We've made orange and made green, too.

Use different colors however you like,
Brighten up that plain, pale white.
We will paint between the lines
And make Mr. Cat look very fine!