Groundhog Day Activities

With Punxsutawney Phil seeing his shadow on Groundhog Day and the looming prospect of six more weeks of winter, you may be thinking what am I going to do to keep the kids busy?  

While I cannot solve that problem for the next six weeks, I can give you a few ideas for this afternoon after the kiddies get home from school.

Capitalize on the weather...

Using today’s dark and gloomy weather to your advantage by making your own shadows!

* Shadow Puppets

• What kid doesn’t like making goofy gestures and corresponding noises.  Instead of correcting them today, encourage them.

* Silhouettes

With just a couple pieces of construction paper and a flashlight you can make a beautiful keepsake.  

• Simply tape a piece of construction paper to the wall at the level of your child’s head. 
• With a pencil or chalk trace your child’s (side) profile made by propping a flashlight at the side of  your child’s face.
• Once the silhouette is traced, cut it out and mount it to a lager piece of white construction paper and “voila” a great gift for yourself or the grandparents!

Simply use your printer...

Coloring is a very cathartic activity, so why not splurge and buy a new box of crayons (because we all know there isn’t anything better than a new box of crayons) and coloring one of these cute groundhog pictures.

• http://homeschooling.about.com/od/holidays/ss/groundhogprint_8.htm
• http://homeschooling.about.com/od/holidays/ss/groundhogprint_9.htm
• http://www.coloring-pages-kids.com/coloring-pages/holiday-season-coloring-pages/groundhog-day-coloring-pages/groundhog-day-coloring-pages-images/groundhog-day-coloring-page-08.php
• http://www.coloringpagesabc.com/groundhog-day-coloring-pages/

Read a book...

I am always a fan of reading thematic stories so hear are a few that I have read in the past as well as a few from Amazon’s top ten groundhog book list.

• Groundhog Weather School, Joan Holub
• Groundhog Day! Gail Gibbons
• The Groundhog Day Book of Facts and Fun, Wendie C. Old
• Geoffrey Groundhog Predicts The Weather, Bruce Koscielniak

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Hope you enjoy a wonderful Groundhogs Day and that our six more weeks of winter will be as mild as the first!