Groundhog Day Activities for Kindergarten
Groundhog Day is a unique holiday that offers a fantastic opportunity to introduce young learners to concepts like weather, making predictions, and seasonal changes. Whether you’re looking for hands-on activities, creative crafts, or read alouds, there are plenty of ways to incorporate Groundhog Day into your lesson plans. If you’re wondering how to bring the excitement of Groundhog Day into your classroom, you’re in the right place!
Groundhog Day Videos
Using an educational video is a great way to introduce the holiday before getting into your Groundhog Day activities. Here’s a list of some high-quality videos that would work great for kindergarten:
- Mystery Science “Can Animals Really Predict the Weather?” – This is a great guided lesson with discussion questions and extension ideas. If you don’t already have access to Mystery Science, they’re currently running a free trial offer, so definitely check it out!
- PBS Learning Media “Groundhog Day” – Here’s a quick video with a quick history of Groundhog Day.
- PBS Learning Media “The Groundhog Way” (Nature Cat) – This is a Nature Cat episode all about Groundhog Day! It’s about 11 minutes long so plan ahead.
- “It’s Groundhog Day” by Jack Hartmann – If your students love Jack Hartmann, you’ll have to check this out!
Groundhog Day Read Alouds
No classroom celebration is complete without a good story! I have a blog post with a list of my favorite Groundhog Day read alouds.
Groundhog Day Math Activities
Groundhog Day brings lots of excitement and it can be full of learning, too! My Groundhog Day centers are perfect when you need something thematic but educational.
The centers cover the following kindergarten math skills:
- Addition within 10
- Counting forward from a given number
- Decomposing numbers 11-19
- 2D and 3D shapes
- Addition and subtraction within 5
Tip: If you don’t use math centers, try putting these activities in your morning tubs!
Groundhog Day Literacy Activities
Looking for literacy centers? I’ve got you covered there as well! These thematic centers cover the following kindergarten literacy skill areas:
- Decoding CVC words
- Letter naming and letter sounds
- Phoneme isolation
- Sight word work
Groundhog Day Writing Activities
Here’s a Groundhog writing activity that comes with visual prompts! This writing activity is also in my Groundhog Day centers pack. There are four pictures provided. Students can choose one of the pictures to write about. Alternatively, you can use the writing page by itself and have students write something they know about Groundhog Day, a fact about groundhogs, etc.
Groundhog Day Craft
The visual of a groundhog popping its head out of a hole is so cute that I just had to have a craft for that! This Groundhog Day craft activity ties in a little learning with a template that is simple for young learners. After assembling the craft, put it into a lunch-sized paper bag. Students can pop the groundhog out of the bag and see whether there’s a shadow!
Make Groundhog Day Special in Your Classroom!
Groundhog Day might be a quick holiday, but it’s the perfect day to engage your students with literacy, math, and creative fun. Whether you’re making predictions, crafting pop-up groundhogs, or reading fun stories, your kindergarteners will love celebrating this tradition!
You might also like:
Five Creative and Inexpensive Valentine’s Day Ideas
100th Day of School Read Alouds
