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Animal Themes
Mammals
Groundhog Day

Groundhogs

Groundhogs
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 4 to 8
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   8.05

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    entrances, seasonal, woody, rests, behavior, encounter, hence, groundhogs, mainly, actually, toilet, spotless, master, predict, escape, separate
     content words:    North America, Groundhog Day

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Groundhogs   
1     In North America, February 2nd is dedicated to an animal who believers say can predict how long winter is going to last. We call this Groundhog Day. Phil, the most famous groundhog, lives in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. He climbs out of his underground home on February 2nd every year to look for his shadow. If the day is sunny and he sees his shadow, it means that there will be six more weeks of cold weather. Since spring is not arriving any time soon, Phil returns to his home and rests some more. If the day is cloudy and Phil cannot see his shadow, it means that spring is just around the corner. Then, Phil stays above ground to find food to fill his empty stomach.
 
2     Groundhogs, also known as woodchucks, are closely related to squirrels. Much bigger than their bushy-tailed relatives, groundhogs can grow up to 20 inches long and weigh more than 10 pounds. Since both groundhogs and squirrels are members of the rodent family, they share one common family trait - all rodents (including the not-so-popular rats) have four large, strong incisors that never stop growing. Groundhogs mainly feed on seeds, grasses, clover, and alfalfa. When food is scarce, they may eat snails, insects, tree bark, and small branches.

Paragraphs 3 to 4:
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