A Craft for Groundhog Day
Groundhog's Day has its roots in the Middle Ages in Europe, perhaps in Germany, where it was known as Candlemas Day and celebrated the midpoint between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. When German settlers moved to the Americas in the late 17th century, they brought the tradition with them. The hedgehog symbolized the holiday in Europe, its American cousin, the groundhog, stood in for the hedgehog in the New World. In Europe, it was believed that a sunny day on February 2cd meant six more weeks of winter. That belief translated to the groundhog seeing its shadow and disappearing back into hibernation. Crafts can help kids learn about both the animal and the meaning of the holiday.
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Wearable Crafts
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Like all small, furry animals, groundhogs are beloved by kids. Let them dress up on the holiday by making and coloring groundhog masks. Cut out the eyes and attach an elastic headband and the class will become a brood of groundhogs. Pieces of brown felt attached to little hands can double as paws.
Play Crafts
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Most kids, and probably most adults, know one fact about groundhogs: that they peek their heads out of their burrows in midwinter and retreat if they see their shadow. Have kids make a simple toy with a paper cup, a tongue depressor and a cut-out of a groundhog. Push the stick through the bottom of the cup, glue on the groundhog and he can pop in and out of his hole as often as the kids wish. A class mobile with drawings of groundhogs can also offer play value.
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Learning Crafts
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Teach kids about the history of Groundhog's Day and fun groundhog facts with matching games, homemade flash cards and mazes that lead to the groundhog's burrow. Templates can be found online or you can adapt existing mazes and puzzles to a Groundhog's Day theme.
Weather Crafts
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Use Groundhog's Day to teach about the seasons and the weather that goes with them. Use a metal fastener to attach a groundhog picture to a large circle made of construction paper, then mark the Winter Solstice, the Spring Equinox, the Summer Solstice and the Fall Equinox, along with their dates, in the appropriate spots on the dial. Also mark Groundhog's Day. Spin the groundhog and discuss the weather where its nose lands.
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References
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