LA HABRA

Students at Imperial Middle School will celebrate the birthday of author Theodor Geisel, also known as Dr. Seuss, next week as part of the second annual Read Across America.

Students will participate in read-aloud sessions on campus with city officials and residents, school officials said. The goal is to have every child in the school read or be read to by a caring adult in the community, said Michelle E. Wilder, a teacher at Imperial who is organizing the event.

Last year, an estimated 20 million children and adults participated in the national program, a number that school officials hope to increase this year.

Geisel, author and illustrator of 44 children’s books, began writing his popular Dr. Seuss series in 1954 after reading a Life magazine report on child illiteracy. Using 220 words, he wrote “The Cat in the Hat” to help develop basic reading skills in children.