Hooray for Diffendoofer Day!

By: Dr. Seuss

with some help from
Jack Prelutsky and Lane Smith
Published by Alfred A. Knopf, INC.

2nd -3rd
Jessica Lowe
EDU 311
TEKS: Language Arts
3)Reading/Beginning Reading/Strategies. Students comprehend a variety of texts drawing on useful strategies as needed. Students are expected
to:
(A)use ideas (e.g., illustrations, titles, topic sentences, key words, and foreshadowing) to make and confirm predictions;
(B)ask relevant questions, seek clarification, and locate facts and details about stories and other texts and support answers with evidence from
text; and
(C)establish purpose for reading selected texts and monitor comprehension, making corrections and adjustments when that understanding
breaks down (e.g., identifying clues, using background knowledge, generating questions, re-reading a portion aloud).
(9)Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Fiction. Students understand, make inferences and draw conclusions about the structure and elements of fiction
and provide evidence from text to support their understanding. Students are expected to:
(A)describe similarities and differences in the plots and settings of several works by the same author; and
(B)describe main characters in works of fiction, including their traits, motivations, and feelings.
(18)Writing/Literary Texts. Students write literary texts to express their ideas and feelings about real or imagined people, events, and ideas. Students are
expected to:
(A)write brief stories that include a beginning, middle, and end; and
(B)write short poems that convey sensory details.
(19)Writing/Expository and Procedural Texts. Students write expository and procedural or work-related texts to communicate ideas and information to
specific audiences for specific purposes. Students are expected to:
(A)write brief compositions about topics of interest to the student;
(B)write short letters that put ideas in a chronological or logical sequence and use appropriate conventions (e.g., date, salutation, closing); and
(C)write brief comments on literary or informational texts.
Other TEKS:
Math
(4)Number and operations. The student applies mathematical process standards to develop and use strategies and methods for whole
number computations in order to solve addition and subtraction problems with efficiency and accuracy. The student is expected to:
(B)add up to four two-digit numbers and subtract two-digit numbers using mental strategies and algorithms based on knowledge of place
value and properties of operations;
(C)solve one-step and multi-step word problems involving addition and subtraction within 1,000 using a variety of strategies based on
place value, including algorithms; and
(10)Data analysis. The student applies mathematical process standards to organize data to make it useful for interpreting information and
solving problems. The student is expected to:
(B)organize a collection of data with up to four categories using pictographs and bar graphs with intervals of one or more;

Social Studies
(2)History. The student understands the concepts of time and chronology. The student is expected to:
(A)describe the order of events by using designations of time periods such as historical and present times;
(C)create and interpret timelines for events in the past and present.

Art
(2)Creative expression/performance. The student expresses ideas through original artworks, using a variety of media with appropriate
skill. The student is expected to:
(A)express ideas and feelings in artworks, using a variety of colors, forms, and lines;
Hooray for Diffendoofer Day!
Introduction
Hooray for Diffendoofer Day! is a book about a school
full of teachers that do things completely outside the
box. Then one day Mr. Lowe the principal came and told
the children that there would be a test and if they didnt
pass their school would be torn down and they would
have to go to the neighboring school in Flobbertown,
where everyone is the same. The children took the test
that day and passed with excellent scores. Mr. Lowe
was so happy he laughed and promised to never frown
again.
Remembering:
Draw a picture of your favorite character in the book, and
write a letter to them explaining why you think they are
so special.

1. The following link displays a timelime of Dr. Suess. Look at the

timeline. Calculate how old the author Dr. Suess was when he
died.

http://www.kidsreads.com/features/010221-seuss/seuss-timeline.asp
Understanding:
1.In your own words, tell me the meaning of this book.
Example:
This book tells me that it is so important to teach your
students to be able to critically think, so that they can
do anything they set their mind to.

2. Why is the book called, Hooray for Diffendoofer Day!?

3. http://www.seussville.com/games/diffendoofer/; for
extra fun
Applying:
If you attended Diffendoofer school, how do you think
you would have done on the test, only being told the day
of the test. Why do you think this?

What steps lead up to the celebration at the end? Did

the students deserve the celebration? Why or why not?
Analyzing

Explain how Diffendoofer school is different from your

school. How each school is different in their approach to
taking a big test, such as the STAAR? Use a Venn
Diagram

If Miss Bonkers had been negative about the test, how

do you think the students would have scored on the test?
Evaluating
If given the opportunity to go to Diffendoofer school or your
current school, which school would you choose, and why?

How was Mr. Lowes mood in the beginning of the story

compared to the Mr. Lowes mood at the end of the story?
Why did his mood change?

How do the students attitudes compare before the test

and after the test?
Creating
Write a story from the perspective of the children that
attend Flobbertown school; do you think they passed
the test and what do you think their teachers where
like.
Create a picture, using several different textures, of the
school, teachers or anything else that represents your
Flobbertown.