Happy Groundhog Day!

Today we decided to hold our own Groundhog Day celebration by creating some groundhog masks and testing our own weather predicting skills! After making our masks and naming our groundhogs with "S" names to go along with the name of our town, we went outside to see if our groundhogs would see their shadow and predict 6 more weeks of winter, or if they would not see their shadow and predict and early spring. 

While Punxsutawney Phil predicted 6 more weeks of winter, our Stratham groundhogs predicted an early spring!

Our prediction was a little hard to believe considering the wind chill was only 8 degrees, so we will have to wait and see who was right!

Happy Groundhog Day

This week, we learned about the holiday Groundhog Day and the traditions behind it. We discovered Thursday morning that Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow despite the very cloudy forecast in PA, predicting six more weeks of winter. We also learned there are lots of other groundhogs across the U.S. who also make their own predictions on Groundhog Day, including Buckeye Chuck in Ohio and Sir Walter Wally in North Carolina.

We came up with our own "groundhogs" to predict the weather for the New Hampshire Seacoast: Stratham Steve, Stratham Sally, Stratham Snowflake, Stratham Sammie, and the list goes on!

All of the Stratham Groundhogs were able to make the same prediction as Phil-- lots of shadows on a sunny day means six more weeks of winter are on their way! 

Happy Groundhog Day!

This week, we celebrated Groundhog Day with a little bit of science and engineering! 

On Monday, we made some predictions about whether or not Punxsutawney Phil would see his shadow, and while the majority of us predicted he would see his shadow, we each came up with inventions to help Phil give us the results we were looking for :) 

For those of us who wanted no shadow and an early spring, we came up with inventions that would shield Phil from the sun. For those of us who wanted more winter, we came up with inventions that gave off lots of light to make a shadow for Phil. 

On Tuesday, we learned that Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow, and thus predicted an early spring. We then got to work making our own groundhogs to test outside to see what our weather prediction would be in Stratham!

It was a very sunny day when we went outside, so our groundhogs made some big shadows on the grass! 

We named our groundhogs and recorded the predictions they had made to hand out in the hallway:

Groundhog Day Fun Facts: 

• Groundhog Day comes from the German holiday Candlemas. They originally looked to hedgehogs to predict the weather! 

If Candlemas brings wind and snow,

Then spring will very soon show.

But if it's clear and bright,

Then spring won't come so right.

• Groundhogs are also called "Whistle Pigs" because they whistle when they are alarmed as well
  as when they begin courting
• Groundhogs are one of the few animals that really hibernate. Hibernation is not just a deep sleep. It is actually a deep coma, where the body temperature drops to a few degrees above freezing, the heart barely beats, the blood scarcely flows, and breathing nearly stops.

Wildlife Encounters- Animals of New Hampshire

On Thursday, we were paid a visit by Derek from Wildlife Encounters along with a few of his animals friends! Before meeting the animals, Derek had us recite the Citizens of Earth's Pledge to the Planet" to protect and respect the living things around us:

"I Pledge Allegiance 

to the Web of Life

of which we are each a strand

and to the planet Earth

on which we stand,

one ecosystem,

under the sun,

interdependent,

with diversity and respect for all"

The first animal we met was a brown Skunk named Fauna. We learned the scientific name for skunks (mephitis mephitis) as well as the scientific name for humans (homo sapiens). The first part of the name refers to the genus of the animal and the second part of the name comes from the species. We also learned that skunks are nocturnal (which means they typically come out at night), but occasionally will come out during the day if it is dark and cloudy. 

We learned that skunks are mammals because they have fur. We also learned that the only difference between hair and fur is that fur grows to a certain length and then stops while hair will continue to grow. Fauna was a little nervous around the big crowd and showed us "Nature's Stop Sign", but luckily she had been de-skunkified before becoming one of Derek's Teaching Assistants! 

Next, we met the largest reptile in New Hampshire, the Snapping Turtle! We learned that turtles don't actually have shells like hermit crabs or shellfish because their shells are part of their body and it cannot be removed! Derek showed us that the center of the shell is actually the turtle's spine and the sides make up its rip cage! Snapping turtles have very long necks, not only to protect themselves from predators, but to also help them catch their food and flip themselves back into upright position should they get knocked over.

Next we met Houdini the Groundhog/Woodchuck. Houdini was a bit plump when we saw him, because he is getting his body ready to hibernate for the winter. We learned why groundhogs/woodchucks gained the nickname "whistle pigs" when Derek lifted him out of his cage! 

Derek also told us about where the holiday "Groundhog Day" originated from. In Germany, when hedgehogs would poke out of their winter homes, it was a sign that spring was on its way! 

Next we met Aurora, the Great Horned Owl. Aurora was rescued from the wild when she was accidentally hit by a car when swooping down to pick up another animal off the side of the road. Aurora was demonstrating the "panting" movement that owls do with their beaks and throats. Owls do this to communicate with one another and they also do it when they are feeling hot or stressed. 

Lorena the Virginia Opossum was also rescued from the wild when her mother was hit by a car while carrying herself and her brothers in her pouch (they are the only marsupials living in North America). We learned that Opossums can hang from their tails and have more teeth than any other North American mammal. She even gave us a glimpse of those 50 pearly whites before Derek placed her back in her cage! 

Lastly, we met a Hognose Snake.This type of snake is only slightly venomous, and they only use it to help capture their prey. While many people are not fond of snakes (including Ms. Riley), we learned that they are vital to keeping our environment in balance! 

Thank you very much for sharing your animals and wealth of knowledge with us, Derek! We can't wait to see you and meet some new animals again later on in the year!