Groundhog Day: What does it mean? How do we Celebrate?

Groundhog day (Feb 2, 2013) is this Saturday. It is one of those holidays that is fun to celebrate but many of us don't know the theory behind it or why it started.  Since this Groundhog day is on a Saturday this year, I thought it might be fun to learn the history and come up with interesting Groundhog day activities to do with the kids.

THEORY:

 The theory behind Groundhog day is the ground hog can predict the upcoming weather and determine if we are going to have an early spring or longer winter.  If he comes out of hibernation and sees his shadow, we are in for another six weeks of winter weather.  If the ground hog comes out of his burrow and it is cloudy, Spring will come early!  According to statistics of 13 Canadian city over the last 30 years, the Canadian Groundhog is only accurate 37% of the time . This percentage is very close to Groundhog predicting the weather by statistical chance alone (33%). Although there is no scientific fact that a Groundhog can actually predict the weather, its fun to see if he's right!(Wikipedia)

HISTORY:

February 2 is a significant day in many ancient religions because it falls at the halfway mark between winter solstice and equinox.

For example:
- The Celtic people held a large fest called Imbolc: a celebration marking of the beginning of spring.
- Christian's celebrate Candlemas as a commemoration the presence of Jesus at the holy temple in Jerusalem. They believe if the sun is shining on this day it signified another 40 days of harsh winter weather.
-German's took this theory one step further and believed that the prediction of 40 more days of harsh winter weather was only true if a badger or large rodent saw their shadow on Candlemas (History).


The earliest Groundhog Day recorded dates back to a diary entry written by James Morris in Pennsylvania in 1841.  It is believed that a large population of German's settled in this area, thus bring the German tradition of Candlemas. The first official Groundhog Day celebration was celebrated in 1877 in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.

WHAT IS A GROUNDHOG?

A groundhog is a rodent of the Sciuridae family and is closely related to to ground squirrels. It goes by other names such as the land beaver, whistling-pig, and woodchuck (Wikipedia). They can grow up to 25 inches long and live for roughly 10 years in captivity.  Groundhogs are usually seen on the ground, but they are good climbers and capable swimmers as well.  During the summer months, groundhogs constantly eat in preparation for their winter hibernation.  During the winter months, they bury themselves in the ground and hibernate until warmer weather comes (thus leading to the Groundhog day tradition!)(National Geographic).

SONG:

I'm a little Groundhog (tune to I'm a little Teapot)

I'm a little Groundhog, short and stout,
On ground hot day I pop my head out.
If i see my shadow, I don't come out
I stay down in my hole and pout!

ACTIVITY:

Groundhog puppet

Supplies:

-Construction paper

-Scissors

-Glue/tape

-Cup

-Straw

-Crayons

How To:

1. Draw a groundhog on a piece of construction paper (You can print one of the internet or find one in the news paper or magazine)

2. Tape to straw

3. Cut a hole in cup.

4. Insert straw/groundhog into cup!

5. Play and sing your song!