A Dr. Seuss themed party is perfect for children of all ages. It is a particularly fun idea for those children who have just been introduced to the zany, crazy, world of Dr. Seuss. You are going to have to play a lot of fun games at a Dr. Seuss party. Here are the two most important rules to follow:
Rule #1: All of the games have to be really silly. They have to be the sorts of games that “The Cat In The Hat” would play with his mischievous pets, “Things 1 and 2”.
Rule#2: Weird is good. Stranger is better when it comes to Dr. Seuss.
We’ve scoured the web for a collection of fun games with a Seussian theme. Our criteria were that they weren’t commercially produced games since we figured you can research those yourself on Amazon.
Don’t get us wrong. Some of the brand games look like they would be a lot of fun to play. But our aim is a bit different. Our goal was to select games that are:
- affordable
- free
- easy to prepare
- easy to play
We’ve even created a few games of our own. We hope you are amused by them. Feel free to select what you like from our list. Perhaps we will even inspire you to create your own silly homemade Suess games.
17 Dr. Seuss Party Games
1. Thing Toss In The Cat’s Hat
Those big party Cat in the Hat hats are pretty easy to find at any local party store. Thing 1 and 2 dolls might be trickier but they can surely be found online. Purchase a bunch of them and you are good to go. The game is easy enough to play. Players take turns trying to throw “the things” inside the cat’s upside-down hat. Alter the distance depending on the age group. Play several rounds and mark the total score to see who can get the most things in the hat.
2. Dr. Seuss Scavenger Hunt
There are a billion ways to go with this one. Open up five Dr. Seuss books and pick out different characters. The fox. The cat. Fish. Horton the elephant.
Borrow and create different themes from the stories as you construct a simple map to find different objects. Give the children plenty of clues. Think of hiding different colored socks, or colored fabric fish, etc.
Or you can decide to just hide stuffed dolls of the various characters throughout the house. You can purchase stuffed animals (or plastic action figures) of different characters and hide them.
This is the kind of game that will require adult supervision for young children in order to make it work well.
3. Hide and Go Sneetch
All you will need is a large pack of star-shaped stickers. One of the children counts while everyone else hides. Then he goes searching for the little Sneetches.
When he finds a Sneetch, he sticks a star sticker on her shirt. Now she becomes the Sneetch seeker. She counts and the game continues. Play until everyone is a Sneetch with a sticker.
4. Yertle the Turtle Relay Race
Gather everyone in an area with a large space (indoors or outdoors) for some relay races. There is one caveat. The participants have to crawl with their hands and legs like turtles with their arms and legs splayed.
Variation: If you own pet turtles you can try to race them if they feel up to it. Promise the turtles that the winner will receive a crunchy cucumber or cherry tomato. Or maybe a little hat.
5. Dr. Seuss Pin The Tail/Pin The Hat On The Cat (or other Suess character) Game
There are thousands of variations of this classic party game with a Seuss theme. The Cat in the Hat really needs his tail. Or you can adapt it to “the fox in socks needs his tail”. A no-brainer is a version where the cat needs his floppy hat.
Players take turns trying to stick (use Velcro which is safer for children than a pin) the cat’s hat on his head while they are blindfolded. Buy a poster of the cat in the hat and create different hats with Velcro attached. Or you can search online for free downloadable printouts.
Again, there are a number of ways to adapt this game. You can stick a star on a Sneetch and see who places it most central on his tummy.
6. Cat In The Hat Tower
Go to your local thrift shop and purchase as many silly hats as you can. They should be cheap enough. Buy dozens of them.
Hats for a man. Hats for a child.
Hats for the fierce and hats for the mild.
Red hats. Blue hats. Green Hats. Shoe hats.
Hats for cats.
Hats for cats on mats. Hats for fat cats.
You get it.
Players take turns being the silly cat and seeing how many hats they can stack on their heads. When the hats fall you are out. The player who stacks the most hats wins.
7. One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish (Red Light, Green Light)
This is a variation of the game “Red light, Green light, One, Two, Three!” The leader has to say the phrase with his eyes closed while the players try to advance towards him without getting caught. If you open your eyes and catch a player moving they have to start over.
The first player to touch your hand wins. Oh, and you have to say “One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish”. It’s kind of like a tongue twister so it’s even more fun.
8. Pass The Fish/Thing/Cat/Sneetch/Fox Around
This is based on a popular children’s game where you pass a ball around a circle while everyone sings a song. When the song ends, the one holding the ball is “out” for the round. Play the same game with a stuffed Seuss character doll. Let the song begin.
“We pass the cat (?) around,
Around and around,
And when the little cat stops,
You…Are…OUT!
9. The Cat In The Hat Says
This is a take-off on the classic Simon Says game. Players follow instructions but only if the leader says “The Cat in the Hat Says”. If a player follows your instruction without hearing the required phrases, he/she is out for that round. Players take turns as the leader. Mix up the tempo of the game according to the age level.
10. Dr. Seuss Rhyming Game
Conjure up the spirit of the late Dr. Seuss with this silly rhyming game. One player starts a phrase and players continue trying to make a rhyme with the phrase. Keep it simple for the little ones and help them if they need it.
For older children or silly adults, you can make it harder by adding a memory component to the game. Each player has to remember the previous rhymes while adding their own.
Variation: Start the game with a Seuss phrase or the title of one of his books. Example: Horton Hears A Who!… I’ve lost my shoe… how do you do?
11. Create Your Own Seuss Character
Have each player draw, paint, or create their own silly Dr. Seuss character. Use play dough, modeling clay, or foam clay. Players have to give their creation a name, say where it’s from, and describe its personality. Little children will need help. This is a great opportunity to help them cultivate their creativity and imagination.
Is he happy, sad, mad, or glad?
Make sure it rhymes. Here is my personal creation:
Meet the terrible five-feathered Gleece,
He comes from the Terrible Mountains of Fleece,
With 700 green teeth, he only eats fresh meat,
And he fancies you as his afternoon treat.
If you want to be a bit more ambitious with an older age group, create your own Seuss-style story incorporating all of their newly created Seuss-styled characters.
12. “I Spy” Dr. Seuss Version
Hide Seuss themed objects throughout the room. Hand out cards with different hidden objects and let each participant take turns telling the other players what they spy. Make sure to assist very little children.
Make it easy. And make it rhyme. “I spy a fish in a dish.” Assist little children so that they don’t give away the clue. (Hint: Encourage them to find objects based on color. Example: A yellow fish. A red fox.) With socks of course.
13. Hop On Pop
Have everyone hop on pop.
On second thought, maybe you should stop.
Maybe you should skip this one. The point, in fact, is to have some fun.
So do not hop on dear old pop.
Don’t hop on pop. He may ask you to stop.
Besides he may pop!
14. Stacking Yertles
This is a simple one. Buy a bunch of cheap rubber turtles from a toy store or your local party supplies outlet. As a general rule, real turtles won’t like it if you start stacking them tower high like JENGA blocks. Players take turns adding a turtle to the tower. The player who makes them fall loses the round. Everyone laughs.
15. Dr. Seuss Telephone Game
This is essentially the classic game of telephone with a silly Seussian twist. The phrase should ideally be a classic one from a popular Seuss book. Example: Green Eggs and Ham….
See how the phrase changes as it makes its way around the room.
16. Find Thing 1 and Thing 2!
The Things are on the loose and they are making mischief! Players take turns hiding the Thing dolls while the rest of the group tears apart the house trying to find them.
Well, maybe don’t tear the house apart. It might make your mother mad. Or sad. She won’t be glad.
17. Dress Up
Inform the parents beforehand that their child has the option to come dressed up as a character from a Seuss story. Make it optional so that no one feels pressured. The children can take turns guessing which characters their friends came dressed as.
We hope you’ve gained from our selection of Dr. Seuss Party Games. The best part about a Dr. Seuss party is that it is impossible to make mistakes. This is, after all, a world where turtles talk and animals dance.
As long as you keep it zany, weird, and really, really silly your party will be a great success. But it might be a mess.
Let the Seuss games begin,
Said the Flinch with a grin.
You cannot be glum.
It will be so much fun!
