The Learning Treehouse preschool and daycare in Rincon celebrated Dr. Seuss' birthday with a week of themed activities.

The school was decorated in a Dr. Seuss motif, and children enjoyed Seuss-themed food — even green eggs and ham. On Wednesday, the Cat in the Hat dropped by The Learning Treehouse to visit with students and read the cat's namesake book.

"We have fun every year celebrating Dr. Seuss' birthday," said Learning Treehouse director Jana Fox. "We have a great time. The kids love it. The kids love Dr. Seuss books, the funny rhymes ... It's great for their early language skills to read."

Students were encouraged to participate in days themed after different Dr. Seuss books:

Monday: "Cat in the Hat" / "Happy Birthday to You" — wear a silly hat

Tuesday: "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" — wear red or blue

Wednesday: "The Foot Book" / "Fox in Socks" — wear silly shoes/socks

Thursday: "Green Eggs and Ham" — wear green  

Friday: "The Lorax" — bring an item to recycle, wear orange or yellow

An initiative The Learning Treehouse is strongly promoting this year is for parents to read with their children at home for at least 15 minutes a night. The school has a book borrowing program in which children can pick out a book to take home and then bring back next day.

"The kids have really, really enjoyed that," Fox said. "Even for the younger ones — even the 18- to 24-month group, even the babies — just reading to them gets that early language in and really gives their vocabulary some great things."

To watch video of the Cat in the Hat's visit to The Learning Treehouse, visit the Featured Video section on the www.effinghamherald.net home page.