Groundhog Day Crafts for Children

How to Make Groundhog Day Crafts and Learning Activities for Children

 

 

Adaptable to all ages, use this fun, printable game to review math facts, spelling words, vocabulary words or facts from lessons.

What You Will Need:

1. Card Stock

2. Laminating Sheets or Clear Tape

3. Dry Erase Markers

 

How to Prepare the Groundhog Review Game:

1. Print out the groundhog hole background picture and the twelve groundhog playing pieces onto card stock. Printable colored patterns are available to members or as an instant download.

This pattern includes a background picture and twelve groundhog playing pieces both in color.

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2. Laminate the groundhog playing pieces and cut them apart. If you can't laminate them, place clear tape over the pieces and then cut them apart.

How to Play:

1. Before class write words or math facts with a dry erase marker on each groundhog playing piece. Write "Spring" or "Winter" on the Punxsutawney Phil groundhog (the one with the black hat). Mix up the groundhog playing pieces and place them in a bag or envelope.

You don't have to write on the playing pieces. Instead, you can write questions pertaining to your lesson on a sheet of paper. When you insert a new groundhog playing piece, ask another question from the sheet of paper.

2. In class the teacher places one of the groundhog playing pieces through the hole in the background picture so that the groundhog can be seen from the front. Pick one student to answer the math fact, read the word, or answer a question. If the student answers correctly, the teacher randomly picks another groundhog playing piece from the envelope and places it up through the hole. The player keeps answering questions until he misses one. Then the next player answers questions until he misses. The player to find Punxsutawney Phil wins.

 

 

Use these groundhog puppets in a fun, interactive way to teach children about shadows and the position of the sun.

How to Make the Groundhog Shadow Puppets:

1. Print out pictures of groundhogs onto card stock. Printable patterns are available to members or as an instant download in both color and black and white.

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2. If you are using the black and white puppets, have your children color them.

3. Glue or tape the groundhog puppets onto jumbo craft sticks.

4. Use the stick puppets to study shadows and how they change with the changing position of the sun.

Science Application

Have your children set up their stick puppets outside so that they are standing upright. You can place the puppets in a hunk of play dough or prop them up with rocks on a hard surface. Give each child a piece of white card stock and a pencil or marker. Tell them to place the piece of card stock so that their puppet's shadow falls on the paper, tape it down, or place weights on the paper to keep it from blowing away, and then trace around the shadow.

Leave the puppet in the same position for at least an hour and then have your children compare the shadow they drew to the shadow the puppet is now making. Ask them why they think the shadow has changed. Explain that the position of the sun is different so the light is falling on the puppet from a different angle. Tell them to point to the sun, without looking directly at it. Ask them to predict what they think the shadow will look like in another hour. Go back outside in another hour and ask your children if the sun is in a different position. Have them compare the shadows.

You can make this lesson more detailed depending on the age of your children. If it is too cold outside or cloudy, you can use a light or flashlight inside instead.

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Children will love playing with their very own groundhogs. The groundhog pops out of its hole to see if there will be six more weeks of winter.

How to Make the Groundhog Day Craft Stick Puppet and Activity Sheet:

1. Print out the activity sheet pattern onto card stock. Cut the top line and fold down the two tabs at the top of the sheet. Use an Exacto knife to cut the slits open.

2. Print out the cloud, sun, and groundhog pictures onto card stock.

3. Have your children color the pictures and then glue the cloud and sun pictures on the activity sheet. When the cloud tab is folded down the "It's Cloudy" words should be showing. When the sun picture is folded down the "It's Sunny" words should be showing.

4. Have your children glue the groundhog picture onto the end of a jumbo craft stick to make the craft stick puppet. Show them how to insert the craft stick puppet into the activity sheet so that the puppet is behind the groundhog hole and the stick is sticking out the front bottom slit.

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On February 2nd will Punxsutawney Phil see his shadow and endure six more weeks of winter or predict that spring is on our doorstep? In any case children can dress him according to his predictions. Have them dress him in a winter hat and gloves if he sees his shadow, or sunglasses and ball cap if he doesn't.

 

What you will need:

Brown Paper Bags, Glue, Stapler,Paper Scraps to Fill the Bag, Brown Paper,Printer Paper, Scissors, and Pencils or Crayons

 

How to Make Paper Bag Groundhog:

1. Stuff a brown paper lunch bag with crinkled up scrap paper. Fold down the top one inch and fold in the sides one inch and then staple the bag closed.

2. Print out the groundhog pattern onto brown paper and cut them out. If you are not a member, draw the groundhog face, arms, and feet onto brown paper and cut them out.

3. Glue the head to the top of the bag and the arms to the sides. Glue the feet to the bottom of the bag.

4. On Groundhog day watch the television news to see if Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow. If he does, dress him in winter clothes. If he doesn't, dress him in spring clothes.

5. If you picked the winter outfit, write a paper about what you like about winter. If you picked the spring outfit, write a paper about what you like about spring.

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Preschool children will love making and wearing this adorable groundhog hat. After discovering if the groundhog has seen his shadow have your children write on the bottom of the hat what the groundhog predicts in your area. Will there be six more weeks of winter or is spring here?

How to Make a Groundhog Day Hat:

1. Print out the free hat pattern. Cut it out. Cut extra strips of card stock the width of the hat to add more length. Tape the hat together to fit on your child's head.

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Help children learn to read with this fun Groundhog Day Printable book.

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Groundhog Day Links:

How to make a popup sock groundhog craft from Sophie's World.

The history of Groundhog Day from Groundhog.org