Happy Ground Hog Day!
Though many of us are experiencing warmer temps than usual and not the "typical" winter with
the accompanying snow and painfully cold temps, you still might find yourself at that point in the
winter where you're in a rut. I can't complain because we've been lucky. We haven't had any
weather that has kept us from going about our normal activities. Still, we're at that point in our
school year where I'm looking for some fun to keep everyone's interest as we coast toward the
spring.
I know a lot of people don't exactly find themselves looking forward to February. I know
some people who actually shudder and would prefer to do as the bears do sleep until it's
over. However, the February calendar is a great place for fun, new lessons. My children love
celebrating Groundhog Day on February 2. There's plenty of material available online and we are
lucky enough to live within forty-five minutes of a local celebration where we wait anxiously as
they pull the little fellow from his hole.
With Groundhog Day just around the corner, consider doing a little research to see what you do
and don't know about this annual tradition. This popular US tradition has us waiting for the
sleepy-eyed groundhog to come out of his hole after a long winter sleep and look for his shadow.
If he sees it, he predicts six more weeks of bad weather, and promptly returns to his hole. If the
day is cloudy and shadowless, he predicts an early spring, and stays above ground.
You probably know all of that, but did you know that Groundhog Day has European roots?
Groundhog day traditions come from beliefs associated with Candlemas Day and the days of
early Christians in Europe. For centuries, the clergy would bless candles and give them to the
people. Even in these early days, it was a milestone in the winter and the weather that day was of
great importance. The Germans picked it up and then concluded that if the sun made an
appearance on Candlemas Day, an animal, the hedgehog, would cast a shadow and predict six
more weeks of bad weather, which they considered as the length of the "second winter".
American farmers in the 19th century referred to Groundhog Day as "Half your hay". New
England farmers knew that winter was not close at hand no matter how cloudy February 2 was.
They believed that the day was often the heart of winter and if the farmers didn't have half their
hay remaining, there would be lean times for the cows before spring and fresh grass arrived.
The present day celebrations focus on the famous little furry stars we have all come to know by
name. Pennsylvania has their Punxsutawney Phil and New York has followed suit with several
famous groundhogs such as Staten Island Chuck, and Malverne Mel.
With so much information about Groundhog Day on the internet, your children could spend more
than a day learning about it. If you live in a town that will be watching its own groundhog pop
out of his hole, consider a field trip as we do each year. I can't think of a more fun way to learn
about the tradition, and your own town's traditions and history than being there. If you aren't
able to actually watch a real groundhog make his appearance, there are plenty of sites with
activities, games and photographs for all children. For younger children there are sites that offer
coloring books, puzzles and games about the groundhog. For older children, you might suggest
they look up the history of the holiday and compare how it was celebrated in Europe to how it is
celebrated today in the United States. Get started with Groundhog Day by checking out these fun
sites:
http://homeschooling.about.com/od/unitssubjhol/qt/feb2a.htm
http://homeschooling.about.com/od/unitssubjhol/qt/feb2a.htm
http://www.apples4theteacher.com/holidays/ground-hog-day/index.html
http://www.groundhogs.com/
http://www.themeunits.com/February_bk.html
Happy Groundhog Day to all and I'll see you in the spring!
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Listen to an Interview with columnist Christina Lorenzen about Homeschooling
Christina Lorenzen is a full-time freelance writer specializing in parenting and health issues. With more than 125 articles published, she also offers her wisdom and experience to other writers by teaching writing workshops through local libraries, bookstores and online. In addition to this column, she is also a columnist for Connecting @ Home magazine. She can reached at carp119@aol.com
Homeschooling Resources
Homeschool Legal Defense Association
Worldbook Offers a page with the typical course of study for children grades K-12
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Christina Lorenzen is a full-time freelance writer specializing in parenting and health issues. With more than 125 articles published, she also offers her wisdom and experience to other writers by teaching writing workshops through local libraries, bookstores and online. In addition to this column, she is also a columnist for Connecting @ Home magazine. She can reached at carp119@aol.com
Listen to an Interview About Homeschooling with Christine Lorensen
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