Groundhog Day Activities and Books for Elementary Students

Groundhog Day is a special holiday celebrated at the turn of winter and spring. It is mainly a fun tradition that lives on for its fun estimation rather than its accuracy, but still a cherished holiday by many.

Teaching students about this holiday is the perfect way to join in world events with some fun activities! I have a couple of resources that include multiple activities to use during the Groundhog Day fun with a focus on math and literacy. I’ve also listed my favorite Groundhog Day books that are sure to be a hit every year.

Groundhog Day Activities:

#1 Groundhog Day Math and Literacy Pack

This resource contains 8 ready-to-print resources you and your students will love. You can use these activities year after year! Students will be able to practice multiple skills, including reading, writing, fractions, and graphing. You can use these activities for centers, small groups, whole group, homework, time-fillers, and exit tickets. On top of being able to teach students factual information about ole Punxsutawney, they will also be able to complete fun activities!

Here are the eight activities included:

• Groundhog Day Graphing: Pass out the ballots and have your students vote on whether the groundhog will see its shadow. Students will graph the results and answer questions about the graph! Ex: If you doubled the votes in each category, how many votes would there be for the groundhog seeing its shadow?)
• Groundhog Day Fractions: Students will ask different numbers of friends if they think the groundhog will see its shadow and then color in the fractions to represent the responses! Two-sided worksheet using halves, quarters, fifths, and sixths.
• Groundhog Day Close Reading Passage: Short reading passage giving information about Groundhog day. Five underlined vocabulary words. (Recommended for 3rd-5th grade readers.)
• Reading Response Questions: Four short answer questions relating to the Groundhog Day Close Reading Passage. Two ‘right there’ questions and two ‘beyond the text’ questions.
• Vocabulary/Summarizing: Students match vocabulary words from Groundhog Day Close Reading Passage to their definitions and then write a summary of the passage using the vocabulary words.
• Color by Product: Students answer basic multiplication facts and follow the key to color the groundhog.
• Making Words: Students create 3-letter, 4-letter, 5-letter, and 6-letter words using letters from ‘Punxsutawney.’ Letter cards are provided for students to use as a manipulative.
• Groundhog Day Word Search: Students search for Groundhog Day-related vocabulary words.

ALL of these activities are included in this one resource! You can see more information and get this resource HERE!

#2 FREE Groundhog Day Word Search Activity

This resource is another perfect activity to use year after year for homework, exit tickets, morning work, centers, and more! Your students can focus on some of the key vocabulary relating to Groundhog Day celebrations.

Groundhog Day Books:

#1 The Night Before Groundhog Day

This fun twist on the traditional Christmas story is now all about Groundhog Day and the fun activities related to this holiday. Students can follow this poetic and rhythmic story to see if a shadow will be seen or not.

#2 Groundhog Day!

This book is filled with factual, informational text about the history of this holiday, ancient traditions, and even details on groundhogs and their lives too. This book is perfect for a fun fact lesson on all things Groundhog Day.

#3 Substitute Groundhog

Everyone knows a groundhog has an important job to do, but what happens when he is sick and can’t make it to the special day? This book shows a fun journey of furry Phil trying to find a substitute for groundhog day. Squirrels, birds, bears – none can seem to fill the big shoes the groundhog wears every year. So, will the special holiday be canceled? Your students will love this fun story, and I think you will too!

You can grab these activities and books to easily fill your lesson plans for Groundhog Day. There’s so much fun packed into these resources. I hope you and your class have a great holiday!
You can find more resources like this at my shop HERE!

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