The Sneetches
By Dr Seuss
Overview: The Sneetches is a familiar favorite about a group of bird‐like creatures. Some
members of the group have green stars on their bellies, and they are quite proud of this
fact. Those without stars feel jealous and inferior, mostly because the star‐bellied
sneetches make fun of them. One day a man comes to the community with a machine that can give the
have‐nots the stars they so desperately desire. They pay the price and are happy—for a moment. The
man sows the seeds of discontent among the first group and then offers to remove their stars. Once they
are without stars, they claim that star‐bellies are ‘out.,’ and plain bellies are ‘in.’ The groups continue to
compete to be the ‘cool’ ones, but only the man manipulating the machine wins. This book shares an
excellent example of how differences can be used to alienate a group. An alternative book with a similar
theme is The Butter Battle Book, also by Dr Seuss.
Possible Themes for Classroom Use/Discussion: Fads, prejudice, racism, tolerance, acceptance, cliques
and popularity.
Activity for "Popularity" Theme:
Materials: Treats, or homework.
Directions: Choose some attribute that people in class have already, like whoever is wearing green that
day or something, and arbitrarily pass out treats to just those people (or tell them they don't have to do
the homework for that day). When they ask why, just tell them they are special. Have those people come
up to the front of the room and ask if anyone notices what made them 'special.' Discuss the fairness of the
activity and how it applies to the students and to life. Reference a news article that discusses the
tendency to vote for those who seem similar to ourselves, such as
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/21/nyregion/race‐and‐politics‐a‐familiar‐pair‐seem‐to‐be‐back‐in‐
town.html?pagewanted=all.
Alternative Activity- The “Unfair Game”:
Materials needed: deck of playing cards, 1 die, candy (or other small, desirable items).
• Prepare by removing several spades from the deck of cards and placing the majority of the
remaining spades near the top of the deck.
• Explain the rules. Sitting in a circle, turns will be taken clockwise beginning with the youngest
person. Everyone starts with 3 pieces of candy. When it is your turn, you may roll the die or
choose a card. If a heart is drawn, take a piece of candy from any one person you choose. If a club
is drawn, pass a piece of your candy to the person on your left. If a diamond is drawn, pass it to
the person on your right. If you draw a spade, you may take a piece of candy out of the bowl. If
you roll the die, and the number is even, you may take a piece of candy from someone. If it is odd,
you must place a piece of your candy in the bowl. At the end of the game, the game leader (the
teacher) will decide who is the winner. Those who run out of candy may not take a turn unless
someone passes them a piece of candy. Everyone keeps whatever candy they have, and the
winner will also have the bowl of candy.
• Play for 3‐4 rounds or about 15 minutes, depending on the size of the group. At the end of play,
determine the winner. Point out those who accepted loss with good sportsmanship and those
who kept the most candy. Then decide that you played best and therefore have won. Resist the
urge to share the candy.
• Discuss the inherent unfairness of the game. How does this apply to your life?
Possible Books to Pair with: Stargirl, Missippi Trial 1955, Diary of Anne Frank, Every Soul a Star
Suggested websites with more mini-lesson ideas:
http://www.teachingchildrenphilosophy.org/wiki/The_Sneetches
http://www.tolerance.org/activity/anti-racism-activity-sneetches
Tanner and Graham, BYU, 2010