Literature Unit: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Name ___________________________________ Date ___________________
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.
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2. Who was your favorite character? Why?
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Literature Unit: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Name ___________________________________ Date ___________________
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. _____________________________
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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. __
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Then the last tree got cut down. ________________________
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Literature Unit: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Name ___________________________________ Date ___________________
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?
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2. What does the Once-ler make his clothes out of?
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3. What did the Truffula tufts smell like?
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4. How many trees did the Super-Axe-Hacker hack at once?
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5. What slogan did the Once-ler put on his cars?
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6. Why did the Swomee-Swans have to leave?
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7. Where was the Once-ler when the Lorax told him about the swans?
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8. What word did the Lorax leave on a pile of rocks?
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Literature Unit: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Name ___________________________________ Date ___________________
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.
4
stump
___________
top
_____________
voice
___________
harm
_____________
mossy
___________
hat
_____________
thing
___________
wrong
_____________
fun
___________
guy
_____________
please
___________
eight
_____________
©2004abcteach.com
Literature Unit: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Name ___________________________________ Date ___________________
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 _______________________________ .
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Literature Unit: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Name ___________________________________ Date ___________________
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
Pretend you’re the Bar-ba-loot looking at the Thneed.
shop..
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2. But the very next minute I proved he was
Pretend you’re the Once-ler as he counts his money.
wrong.
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3. Then again he came back! I was fixing some pipes...
Pretend you’re the Lorax.
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4. But now, says the Once-ler, “Now that you’re here…”
Pretend you’re the boy.
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Literature Unit: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Name ___________________________________ Date ___________________
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?
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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?
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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?
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Literature Unit: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Name ___________________________________ Date ___________________
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?
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2. Why do you think the Lorax didn’t like the Once-ler’s business?
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3. Why do you think the Lorax left?
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4. At the story’s end, how do you think the Once-ler feels about all
the money he made? _________________________________
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Literature Unit: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Name ___________________________________ Date ___________________
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
9
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
EXTRA CREDIT:
X L E R K I
WEEHAWKEN
BAR-BA-LOOTS
SWOMEESWANS
B O N -
M O N W L G O
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
©2004abcteach.com
Literature Unit: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Name ___________________________________ Date ___________________
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
Continue on the back of the page if you need to.
sentences.
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.
__________________________________________________
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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?
__________________________________________________
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4. Remember how you felt about this story at the start of this unit?
Explain whether you feel differently now.
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Literature Unit: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Name ___________________________________ Date ___________________
Answer Key:
A. and B. Answers vary.
C. 1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Grickle-grass
miff-muffered moof
fresh butterfly milk
four
You Need a Thneed
the smoke or smog
fixing the pipes or the Pipe House
unless
D.
1. done
hat
green
mess
sneeze
tongue
puffed
sky
part
one
that
clean
guess
trees
lung
tuft
I
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
U
N
L
E
S
S
X
B
O
L
S
N
U
F
F
U
L
A
L
O
N
C
N
W
E
E
H
A
W
K
E
N
C
T
U
E
O
C
E
O
E
R
F
R
V
E
N
M
O
L
N
K
K
C
A
U
V
H
C
L
E
O
C
O
I
A
C
F
L
M
T
H
N
E
E
D
M
S
T
F
O
O
E
L
V
L
–
T
O
H
O
U
R
N
J
O
Q
T
L
S
N
W
R
L
A
E
T
R
E
E
E
C
W
U
Y
A
V
Y
E
A
Y
R
J
L
A
K
A
T
Y
X
L
P
K
O
G
F
N
Y
B
A
R
B
A
L
O
O
T
S
J. Answers vary.
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