Buzzing bees!
March 2 is Dr. Suess' (Theodor Geisel) birthday, and we could not let that occassion pass without a celebration. Inspired by Dr. Suess' stories, we had fun today making Oobleck and Green Eggs and Ham, and we hope you enjoy them too. Stop by our facebook page and let us know what your favourite Dr. Suess story is, or post a picture of your Dr. Suess celebrations. We hope you enjoy these activities as much as we did! Oobleck: Bartholemew and the Oobleck is one of Dr. Suess' lessor known stories, and unlike many of the Dr. Suess books we are familiar with, it is written in standard prose rather than in poetic form (anapestic tetrameter, to be precise). Bartholemew and the Oobleck tells the story of a king who becomes bored with all the regular weather like sun, rain, snow, and fog, and orders his magicians to come up with something new. The new weather the magicians devise is "oobleck", a sticky green substance that falls from the sky and coats the kingdom, making everyone, including the king, miserable. The king soon regrets wishing for the new weather, and orders that the magicians get rid of the oobleck. Unfortunately for the king, the magicians' cave is also coated in oobleck, and they are stuck inside it and unable to help. Bartholemew, the king's page, suggests that maybe the king should apologise for his wish. The king initially refuses, but relents when Bartholemew points out that the king is not much of a king while coated in oobleck. When the king does say he is sorry, the oobleck disappears and the sun returns.
After reading the story, we made and played with our own version of oobleck. Oobleck is beary fun to play with, but it is also beary special. It is what is known as a "non-Newtownian fluid". It defies Newton's Third Law of Physics (for more on Newton's laws of physics, read Darla's review of this week's Top Pick, the Plan Toys Build and Spin set), and acts as a liquid when it is pored, but a solid when a force is acting on it. You can mold it into a ball in your hand, but as soon as you loosen your grip, it will ooze out like a liquid. If you try and tip the container it is in, it will pour (albeit slowly), like a conventional liquid, but if you try and scoop it up with a spoon, it will feel more like you are chiselling into a solid substance. It's a great sensory experience and physics experiment, and will keep your kiddos busy for quite some time. It's easy to make too:
Oobleck:
Ingredients
1 cup (250 mL) cornstarch
appoximately 1 cup (250 mL) water, plus more if needed
green food colouring, if desired
Method
1. Place cornstarch into bowl. Slowly add water, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the water is incorporated. The oobleck should be hard to stir, but appear liquid on top. You will have a pretty good sense of when you have reached the right consistency. Add food colouring if desired, and play!
Notes: You may wish to line your table or floor with newspaper before you start playing, as spilled oobleck can be tricky to clean up. You should also dispose of your oobleck when you are finished with it by throwing it in the garbage rather than pouring it down the drain. Pouring oobleck down your drain may clog it!
Green Eggs and Ham: After playing with our oobleck, we all had a craving for a treat we could eat. The obvious choice on a day of celebration for Dr. Suess was our own version of Green Eggs and Ham. Here's what we did.
Green Eggs and Ham
Ingredients
1/2 300 gram package frozen chopped spinach, prepared according to package directions
3 eggs (note this made very dark green eggs. You may wish to use more eggs for a less spinachy version)
1 tablespoon (15 mL) milk of choice
Salt and pepper
Parsley, basil, or other green herbs of your choice (optional)
Bread of choice
Method
1. Puree eggs, spinach, milk and herbs, if using, in a blender until mixture is smooth and there are no obvious pieces of spinach. Season mixture with salt and pepper, if desired.
2. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat, and spray with cooking spray. Pour spinach mixture into frying pan, and prepare scrambled eggs as you normally would.
3. Meanwhile, toast and butter your bread of choice. Use cookie cutters to cut out the letters "H-A-M".
4. Serve green eggs with your "H-A-M", and for fun, encourage your kids to rearrange their letters to make new words ("a", "am", "ha", etc.). Finish up by reading Green Eggs and Ham.
Enjoy your Dr. Suess festivities!
Yours Beary Truly,
Theodore Bear and the Ape 2 Zebra Animal Associates
After reading the story, we made and played with our own version of oobleck. Oobleck is beary fun to play with, but it is also beary special. It is what is known as a "non-Newtownian fluid". It defies Newton's Third Law of Physics (for more on Newton's laws of physics, read Darla's review of this week's Top Pick, the Plan Toys Build and Spin set), and acts as a liquid when it is pored, but a solid when a force is acting on it. You can mold it into a ball in your hand, but as soon as you loosen your grip, it will ooze out like a liquid. If you try and tip the container it is in, it will pour (albeit slowly), like a conventional liquid, but if you try and scoop it up with a spoon, it will feel more like you are chiselling into a solid substance. It's a great sensory experience and physics experiment, and will keep your kiddos busy for quite some time. It's easy to make too:
Oobleck:
Ingredients
1 cup (250 mL) cornstarch
appoximately 1 cup (250 mL) water, plus more if needed
green food colouring, if desired
Method
1. Place cornstarch into bowl. Slowly add water, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the water is incorporated. The oobleck should be hard to stir, but appear liquid on top. You will have a pretty good sense of when you have reached the right consistency. Add food colouring if desired, and play!
Notes: You may wish to line your table or floor with newspaper before you start playing, as spilled oobleck can be tricky to clean up. You should also dispose of your oobleck when you are finished with it by throwing it in the garbage rather than pouring it down the drain. Pouring oobleck down your drain may clog it!
Green Eggs and Ham: After playing with our oobleck, we all had a craving for a treat we could eat. The obvious choice on a day of celebration for Dr. Suess was our own version of Green Eggs and Ham. Here's what we did.
Green Eggs and Ham
Ingredients
1/2 300 gram package frozen chopped spinach, prepared according to package directions
3 eggs (note this made very dark green eggs. You may wish to use more eggs for a less spinachy version)
1 tablespoon (15 mL) milk of choice
Salt and pepper
Parsley, basil, or other green herbs of your choice (optional)
Bread of choice
Method
1. Puree eggs, spinach, milk and herbs, if using, in a blender until mixture is smooth and there are no obvious pieces of spinach. Season mixture with salt and pepper, if desired.
2. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat, and spray with cooking spray. Pour spinach mixture into frying pan, and prepare scrambled eggs as you normally would.
3. Meanwhile, toast and butter your bread of choice. Use cookie cutters to cut out the letters "H-A-M".
4. Serve green eggs with your "H-A-M", and for fun, encourage your kids to rearrange their letters to make new words ("a", "am", "ha", etc.). Finish up by reading Green Eggs and Ham.
Enjoy your Dr. Suess festivities!
Yours Beary Truly,
Theodore Bear and the Ape 2 Zebra Animal Associates
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