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Wow, Sam-I-Am! They did indeed like green eggs and ham
eggs full.jpgPre-kindergarten students enjoy a breakfast of green eggs and ham at Springmill STEM Elementary School.

      Two dozen eggs cracked opened the door to a heaping helping of learning Thursday morning for pre-kindergarten children at Springmill STEM Elementary School.

      Dr. Seuss’s classic “Green Eggs and Ham” had the young students laughing, counting, participating in the story and creating a chart to register their opinions after tasting green eggs.

      The children sat cross-legged, eyes wide as teachers Kim Wendt and Andrea Schmidt-Payne took the opposing roles of Sam-I-Am and the character who repeatedly refuses to taste green eggs and ham.

      They laughed at Sam-I-Am’s animated attempts to persuade Wendt’s character.

      “I will not eat them in a house,” Wendt declared. “I will not eat them with a …”

      “Mouse!” the kids shouted.

      “I do not like them in a box,” Wendt continued. “I do not like them with a …”

      “Fox!” was the unison reply.

      And so it went, the children always providing the rhyming words. At the end, Wendt's character finally relents, tastes the green eggs and declares that she likes them after all.

      Afterward, the students moved – two at a time – to a table where they each cracked an egg, emptying the contents into a large bowl. After all 24 eggs were cracked they looked into the bowl and agreed that blue food coloring would turn the eggs green.

      The kids counted together as Wendt released drops of blue: One, two, three, four, five! They counted to 10, then to 20 as she used a non-electric hand mixer to beat the eggs. They peered into the bowl again and agreed, collectively, that the eggs were indeed green.

      Most expressed the view that green eggs might not taste too good.

      Minutes later the eggs and ham were cooked and the children were seated at tables, enjoying an authentic Dr. Seuss breakfast.

      “These are good!” declared one boy, flashing a thumbs-up sign.

      “Can I have some more?” asked a girl at the next table.

      As each child finished, Schmidt-Payne had them sit with her to register an opinion about the green eggs by pasting a green “yes” card or a yellow “no” card on a large board. 

      “Turn on your counting brains,” Schmidt-Payne told the group.

      Together they counted 20 who liked the eggs and only four who didn’t.

      Lesson learned: Maybe it’s best to try something before you decide you don’t like it.

      Dr. Seuss would have been proud.