How do we know when winter ends and spring begins? Well, on February 2nd, a groundhog makes a guess! The tale goes that if a groundhog sees its shadow due to clear skies, then there will be six more weeks of winter. But if the groundhog doesn’t see its shadow due to overcast weather, then there will be an early spring. The United States looks to one Pennsylvanian groundhog’s shadow to make this prediction: Punxsutawney Phil.
While studies haven’t found a correlation between a groundhog seeing its shadow and the arrival of spring, celebrating Groundhog Day is still a fun way to break up the seasons and teach your students something new. Check out the following Groundhog Day activities for elementary students to see how you can bring this holiday into your lesson plans.
12 Groundhog Day Activities to Use in Elementary School
From science to Spanish, Groundhog Day is a seasonal moment that can be incorporated into any subject’s lessons. Use the groundhog’s movement in and out of its stump to teach about prepositions in ELA and speech therapy. Take this timely opportunity to explore the relationship between light and shadows in STEM lessons. Or practice fine motor skills with groundhog crafts and art projects. No matter what groundhog-themed lesson you choose, you can’t go wrong with any of these 12 Groundhog Day activities for elementary students.
Kindergarten Math Centers for February by The Daily Alphabet
Grades: PreK – K | Math, Basic Operations
Groundhog Day Preschool Language Unit for Speech Therapy (+BOOM Cards) by Itty Bitty Speech
Grades: PreK – 1st | Special Education, Speech Therapy
FREE Find the Groundhog (above/below, in front/behind) for Speech Therapy by Teach Speech 365
Grades: PreK – 2nd | English Language Arts, Speech Therapy
Free!
Groundhog Day Activities by Curriculum Castle
Grades: K – 1st | Science
Groundhog Day Spanish by Bilingual Shop
Grades: K – 2nd | Numbers, Spanish, Writing
Free!
Groundhog Day Craft and Graph by Foxwell Forest
Grades: K – 2nd | English Language Arts, Writing
Groundhog Day STEM Activity Light and Shadows Investigation by Carly and Adam STEM
Grades: 1st – 5th | Science, Engineering
Groundhog Day Writing Activity Prompt Bulletin Board February Teach-Go Pennants™ by The Little Ladybug Shop
Grades: 2nd – 4th | English Language Arts
Virtual Field Trip to Punxsutawney Groundhog Day – Google Slides & Seesaw by MagiCore
Grades: 2nd – 5th | Social Studies, Reading
Groundhog Day Reading and Writing Activities | Literacy Centers by The Literacy Dive
Grades: 3rd – 5th | English Language Arts
Groundhog Day Mini-Unit by Hillary Kiser – Hillary’s Teaching Adventures
Grades: 3rd – 5th | Reading
Free!
Groundhog Day Reading Comprehension Paired Passages – Close Reading Activities by The Tulip Teacher
Grades: 3rd – 5th | Reading
For more groundhog-themed inspiration and resources, exploreother Groundhog Day activities on TPT.
