Groundhog Weather School - Joan Holub

Illustrated by Kristin Sorra
G. P. Putnam's, 2009
$16.99
32 pages
My rating: 5
Grades 1-4
Endpapers: 3 shades of aqua - blueprints of a groundhog's burrow.

Because the winter weather is different depending on where you live, the head weather groundhog decides to open a groundhog weather school. He advertises and we see many different animals examining the ads. School begins and we meet a number of the students. We read their reports on actual "real" famous groundhogs - from Punxatawny Phil in PA to Sir Walter Wally in NC to Buckeye Chuck in OH -- and even Pierre C. Shadeaux in LA - eight in total. We learn about natural weather predictors (ie: tree leaves curl up if there's moisture in the air). We learn a bit about famous weathermen, facts about groundhogs and their lives, the reasons for seasons, how shadows happen - and then we follow several of the students who graduate - and what happens between then and February 2nd (Groundhog's Day).

Comical. Clever. Entertaining. Interesting. Informative. Jam-packed with information, this book completely won me over: My 4th graders would love it - a fun, easy way to learn all SORTS of things!

Illustrations cover the page in medium tones...and the groundhogs are adorable!

And by-the-way...this very morning, February 2nd, the groundhog saw his shadow - so six more weeks of winter. A horrible thing for Northeast Harbor, Maine which wakes up to a frigid 8 degress this morning, but an awesome thing for sunny southern Arizona which wakes up to high-40's and gets leaves work in the 60's.....let's keep the heat down for as long as possible!