The Lorax by Dr. Seuss Have you ever met a lonely old man? Did he tell you a story? In Dr. Seuss s book The Lorax, the lonely old Once-ler tells a sad story. Once the land was full of happy animals and beautiful Truffula trees. Now everything is ugly and bare. How did it happen? The Once-ler used the Truffula trees to make Thneeds. At first, he only cut down one tree. Out of the stump came a strange, short creature the Lorax! The Lorax tried to protect the trees from the Once-ler. But the Once-ler didn t listen. He cut down more trees to make more Thneeds. He built a huge factory. The factory put gunk in the air and water. All the animals had to move away. When the last tree was used, the factory closed. The Lorax left. The Once-ler was all alone. Now the land is empty and ruined. Will the Lorax and his friends ever come back? That depends on what you do. A. Answer each question in complete sentences. 1. Did you like this book? Explain why or why not. 2. Who was your favorite character? Why? 1 2004abcteach.com
Tell the Story Yourself Let s see how much of the story you remember. First, read all the sentences on this page. Then, fill in the story between these sentences. Try to do it without looking at the book. Keep it short! You don t need details, just a quick summary of what happened. If you have to, check the book. B. The boy pays the Once-ler to tell his story. A long time ago, the Once-ler cut down a tree and made a Thneed. Then the Lorax came and told him to stop. The Lorax came again and said the Bar-ba-loots had to move away to find food. But the Once-ler just made his factory bigger. Then the last tree got cut down. 2 2004abcteach.com
Hunt the Details You ll need the book for this exercise! A good story usually has many details. You may not remember them, but they help make the story interesting. Let s find some! C. Please answer each question. 1. What kind of grass grows at the far end of town? 2. What does the Once-ler make his clothes out of? 3. What did the Truffula tufts smell like? 4. How many trees did the Super-Axe-Hacker hack at once? 5. What slogan did the Once-ler put on his cars? 6. Why did the Swomee-Swans have to leave? 7. Where was the Once-ler when the Lorax told him about the swans? 8. What word did the Lorax leave on a pile of rocks? 3 2004abcteach.com
Rhyme Time Dr. Seuss often used rhymes when he was telling a story. Good rhymes are fun! Let s practice our rhymes a bit. D. 1. Draw a line between each pair of words that rhyme. done tuft hat I green guess mess lung sneeze that tongue clean puffed heart sky one part trees 2. For each word, write a word that rhymes with it. stump top voice harm mossy hat thing wrong fun guy please eight 4 2004abcteach.com
Nonsense Names Did you enjoy those rhymes? Sometimes, it s hard to find a rhyme. Dr. Seuss had a special trick for a tough rhyme. He made up his own words! Look at these examples. Then he hides what you paid him away in his Snuvv, his secret strange hole in his gruvvulous glove. What s more, snapped the Lorax. (His dander was up.) Let me say a few words about Gluppity-Glupp. Let s try this ourselves! Take this unfinished poem: The man said the moon was a huge hunk of Swiss, And no one believed him but. We need a name that rhymes with Swiss. Also, it should fit the rhythm of the poem. How about: The man said the moon was a huge hunk of Swiss, And no one believed him but Barnaby Niss. E. Your turn! Finish each poem with a nonsense name. Be sure the rhythm and rhyme are correct. 1. Val ate the cookie, then said it was crummy, Which angered the baker, Miss. 2. And I had no real use for the old pair of shoes, But they made a great gift for my Aunt. 3. Hannah didn t want to learn karate, She should have told her uncle,. 4. I don t suppose you ve ever heard Of the Giant Squash of. 5 2004abcteach.com
Pretend You re the Lorax Why didn t the Once-Ler care about the Truffulas? Why did the Lorax care? Sometimes, we can understand a character better if we imagine ourselves in his place. F. For each question, turn to the page that begins with the words given in italics. Look at the illustration. Pretend you re the character, and write what this character might be thinking. 1. In no time at all, I had built a small shop.. Pretend you re the Bar-ba-loot looking at the Thneed. 2. But the very next minute I proved he was wrong. Pretend you re the Once-ler as he counts his money. 3. Then again he came back! I was fixing some pipes... Pretend you re the Lorax. 4. But now, says the Once-ler, Now that you re here Pretend you re the boy. 6 2004abcteach.com
Pretend You re in the Truffula Forest Now you can really use your imagination! Dr. Seuss drew some crazy worlds. What if you could be in them? G. For each question, turn to the page that begins with the words given in italics. Look at the illustration. Answer the question. 1. You won t see the Once-ler. Imagine yourself climbing the ladder up to the Once-ler s room. Imagine you live in that house. What s it like? 2. And, under the trees, I saw Brown Bar-ba-loots Imagine yourself climbing the tree with the Bar-ba-loot to get some fruit. What s it like to live and play in the forest? 3. You re glumping the pond where the Humming-Fish hummed! Imagine you re standing next to the Lorax. What would it be like to slip and fall into that pond? 7 2004abcteach.com
Why Did the Lorax Leave? Now you ve imagined yourself in the Lorax s world. Maybe you understand him and the others a bit better. H. Answer each question in complete sentences. 1. Why do you think the Once-ler cut down the Truffulas? Did he hate trees, or was there another reason? 2. Why do you think the Lorax didn t like the Once-ler s business? 3. Why do you think the Lorax left? 4. At the story s end, how do you think the Once-ler feels about all the money he made? 8 2004abcteach.com
Word Search Okay, we ve been doing a lot of hard thinking here. Let s try something different. I. Find each list word and cross it out. Words may be vertical, horizontal, or diagonal. A letter may be part of more than one word. LORAX TREE CASH UNLESS SNUVV MONEY FACTORY THNEED LERKIM ONCE-LER TRUFFULA EXTRA CREDIT: WEEHAWKEN BAR-BA-LOOTS SWOMEE- SWANS X S N U V V L O R A V - B U N W E E H M O N E Y T A N U E O N C T E J T E Y R L F E C M L H L O R A X - E F H E O E N V Q E - L B S U A - L O E L T E Y P A S L W O N C E L E R K - - A K E K O D T S C J O L X L E R K I M O N W L G O B O N - C A S H W U A F O O N C F A C T O R Y K N T L C T R U F F U L A A Y S 9 2004abcteach.com
Finding the Themes A good story has ideas about life. These are called themes. Let s see what themes you found in this story. J. Answer each question in complete sentences. Continue on the back of the page if you need to. 1. How should the Once-ler have acted? Why do you think so? 2. What do you think is the most important theme in this story? Explain whether or not you agree with it. 3. Think of an example of how you might have to choose between making money and taking care of plants or animals. What do you think you will choose? 4. Remember how you felt about this story at the start of this unit? Explain whether you feel differently now. 10 2004abcteach.com
Answer Key: A. and B. Answers vary. C. 1. Grickle-grass 2. miff-muffered moof 3. fresh butterfly milk 4. four 5. You Need a Thneed 6. the smoke or smog 7. fixing the pipes or the Pipe House 8. unless D. 1. done one hat that green clean mess guess sneeze trees tongue lung puffed tuft sky I part heart 2. Answers vary. E. Answers vary. Be sure the nonsense name matches the rhythm and rhyme of the poem. F., G., and H. Answers vary. I. X S N U V V L O R A V - B U N W E E H M O N E Y T A N U E O N C T E J T E Y R L F E C M L H L O R A X - E F H E O E N V Q E - L B S U A - L O E L T E Y P A S L W O N C E L E R K - - A K E K O D T S C J O L X L E R K I M O N W L G O B O N - C A S H W U A F O O N C F A C T O R Y K N T L C T R U F F U L A A Y S J. Answers vary. 11 2004abcteach.com