The Sneetches

Now it may very well be an impossible task to choose a Dr. Seuss favourite but The Sneetches is right up there on the list of my favourite children’s books of all time... not just Seuss!

Just read this excerpt and you’ll see why

“Now, the Star-Belly Sneetches- Had bellies with stars.
The Plain-Belly Sneetches-Had none upon thars.
Those stars weren’t so big. They were really so small.
You might think such a thing wouldn’t matter at all.
But, because they had stars, all the Star-Belly Sneetches
Would brag, “We’re the best kind of Sneetch on the beaches.
With their snoots in the air, they would sniff and they’d snort
“We’ll have nothing to do with the Plain-Belly sort!”
And whenever they met some, when they were out walking,
They’d hike right on past them without even talking.”

For those of you who are curious to see more I've included a vid of the story... it's such a treat! 

The message here is crystal clear, and in a way that only Suess can, he underscores just how silly it is to discriminate and be mean to others because they look different than you do.

After they listened to the story we had a very interesting discussion about what it meant. Why the sneetches were different, what made them so, were those differences real? How did they learn to act this way and why? What words would you use to describe the Star-Bellied Sneetch? What words would you use to describe the Plain-Bellied Sneetch? What do you think of the Star-Machine Man? Boy I just LOVED this story!! At the end of course I asked them what was the moral and we deduced that Sneetches are Sneetches, just like people are people. When I say we put the ART in SMartTY PANTS... this is just what I mean! 

For our art the campers made a Plaster Paris Sneetch so they got to create an armature and work on creating a 3D work or art! We're not done yet though so we'll be working on these again tomorrow and then they'll be ready to be adored for all their glorious Sneetchiness!! Let's see which of my campers will put "a star upon thars!" LOL