Groundhog’s Day (Feb. 2) is an easily overlooked holiday. It is one of those holidays that kind of sneaks up on you, and even if you do decide to teach it, it is almost too late. Well, this packet is perfect for that last minute decision to include this holiday in your already busy schedule.
It is important to me to make the classroom experience unique and exciting for my students. I know that that is not always possible, but holidays are a perfect chance for me to step it up for them. I love when students say, "This was the best day ever!" Okay, so maybe they don't exactly say that about Groundhog's Day, but they do enjoy it. If I took it a step further I know that it would be one of their favorites. Instead, I keep it kind of simple, yet different from the normal daily routine.
I like to start the day off by having a big sign displayed that says, “Happy Groundhog’s Day.” I usually just write it on the whiteboard in different color markers. I have some posters from Weekly Reader that I like to have hanging up as well.
Once my students are settled, I explain that it is Groundhog’s Day and then I tell them a little about this holiday. You can easily Google it, but here are a couple of easy-to-use websites that you might like:
Britannica - https://www.britannica.com/topic/Groundhog-Day
National Today - https://nationaltoday.com/groundhog-day/
Once they have a quick idea of what Groundhog’s Day is, I show a YouTube video that shows whether Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow or not.
As the day progresses, I use other resources that I have collected over the years along with my Groundhog's Day packet in order to keep with the Groundhog's Day theme. This packet includes a simple art project in which students learn to read a poem and use their groundhog to pop out of its hole. There is also a making words activity, a word search, and a finger puppet retell with facts.
The puppet retell is a fun activity that allows students to learn some facts about the groundhog and then use their finger puppets to share the facts with a friend. They can use their puppets to share other facts that they have learned as well.
These activities are a great way to keep students engaged as they learn about this holiday. The wonderful part about it is that they are still growing in various academic areas.
Click on the link if you are interested in checking out this resource.
Groundhog's Day Resource Packet
