Disclosure: Greatful Moments received information about the partnership between GoNoodle and Warner Bros. Pictures Animation’s The Cat in the Hat. This post shares the program and contest information for families who may want to participate.
Speak Thinglish and Get Moving with GoNoodle and The Cat in the Hat
If your kids are already excited about The Cat in the Hat coming to theaters this November, there’s a fun way to get them moving before movie night arrives.
GoNoodle and Warner Bros. Pictures Animation’s new The Cat in the Hat have teamed up for a month of movement, family fun, and a little something called Thinglish.
And no, you don’t have to learn a whole new language.
You just have to move!
What Is Thinglish?
In the new animated movie, the Things don’t communicate with spoken words. Instead, they use movement and body percussion to communicate in what is called Thinglish.
GoNoodle has created a new video called Let’s Speak Thinglish!, working with the film’s choreographer, Christopher Scott.
Kids can learn the Thinglish movements for:
- Hello
- Goodbye
- Yes
- No
Then they get to try something even more fun.
They can say “My name is…” and create their very own name in Thinglish.
That means kids aren’t simply watching a video. They’re learning the movements and then using their imaginations to create something of their own.
Turn It Into a Family Activity
I love activities that get everyone up out of their chairs for a few minutes.
This one could easily become a family brain break.
Put on the GoNoodle Thinglish video and learn the movements together.
Then have everyone create their own Thinglish name.
Mom can have one.
Dad can have one.
The kids can have one.
And yes, if you have a dog who wants to participate, I’m pretty sure the dog can have one too!
Once everyone has learned the basics, challenge your family to have a conversation using only Thinglish.
How do you say hello?
How do you say no?
Can someone figure out what you’re trying to communicate without you saying a word?
Suddenly a few minutes of movement has turned into a family game.
There’s Also a Minutes of Movement Contest
GoNoodle and The Cat in the Hat are taking the movement challenge a step further with a nationwide Minutes of Movement contest.
The contest runs from October 5 through November 1, 2026.
Classrooms and families across the United States can compete by logging their movement time through GoNoodle. According to the contest information, every minute of GoNoodle watched counts as one minute of movement.
And there are movie tickets on the line.
What Can You Win?
The winning classroom will receive a family pack of four movie tickets for every student and the teacher, allowing the class to see The Cat in the Hat together at a local theater.
Families can also compete for family packs of movie tickets.
The winners are scheduled to be announced November 4, just two days before the movie arrives in theaters.
That’s pretty good timing for a movie-night reward.
Make October a Movement Challenge
If you’re looking for something to add to your family’s October calendar, you could make this your own little movement challenge.
5 minutes: Learn the Thinglish movements.
10 minutes: Practice the movements together.
15 minutes: Create Thinglish names for everyone in the family.
20 minutes: Have a family Thinglish conversation.
And if your kids want to keep going, let them create an entire Thinglish story using only movement and body percussion.
There are no wrong answers when you’re inventing your own language.
This Could Be a Great Homeschool Brain Break
For homeschooling families, this could also be an easy activity to work into the school day.
Sometimes everybody needs to get up from the table.
Instead of telling everyone to take a break and wander off to another screen, turn the break into a movement activity.
You could even connect it to a lesson.
Study communication.
Talk about body language.
Explore how people communicate without speaking.
Create your own symbols or movements.
Then finish by learning Thinglish together.
It’s a reminder that learning doesn’t always have to happen sitting at a desk with a pencil in your hand.
Sometimes learning looks like moving around the living room and laughing at one another.
And Then There’s the Movie
Warner Bros. Pictures Animation’s The Cat in the Hat arrives in theaters and IMAX across North America on November 6, 2026.
So your family could spend October learning Thinglish and getting those minutes of movement in, and then make a family movie outing part of the celebration in November.
I always like when a movie promotion gives families something to actually do together instead of simply telling us to go see the movie.
This one gives kids a chance to move, create, laugh, and teach their families something new.
And if your kids start speaking Thinglish around the house, don’t say I didn’t warn you!
Ready to Speak Thinglish?
Families and teachers can visit GoNoodle to find the Let’s Speak Thinglish! activity and learn more about participating.
For more information about the movie, visit the official Warner Bros. Pictures website.
The contest runs October 5–November 1, 2026, with winners announced November 4.
Then The Cat in the Hat comes to theaters November 6.
So grab the kids, clear a little space in the living room, and get moving.
You never know.
By the time November arrives, your family might be fluent in Thinglish.
