Groundhog Day is a fun way to predict the weather. The groundhog may come out of its hole and see its shadow. Folklore says that means six more weeks of winter weather. The groundhog may not see its shadow. Then spring is supposed to come soon.

Groundhog Day may have come from ancient festivals. Those festivals had little to do with weather. But they came right between mid-winter and the beginning of spring. Tradition says that if the weather is sunny on the festival day, there will be a lot more winter. If it is cloudy on that day, spring is right around the corner.

The Germans came to Pennsylvania in the 1700's. They brought these traditions with them. The Germans used to watch a badger or other animal to predict the end of winter. When they came to the United States, they used a groundhog instead.

The earliest Groundhog Day on record was in 1841. The first official one was in 1886. It was in Pennsylvania. There was an article about it in a newspaper in Punxsutawney. People thought it was fun. They named their groundhog Punxsutawney Phil. They still have a festival every year. The movie, Groundhog Day, was made in 1993. Now thousands of tourists come to Punxsutawney each year to see Phil.

Other groundhogs predict the weather in the United States and Canada. The groundhogs are right about one out of three times.