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GENERAL ENGLISH · SPECIAL REPORT · PRE-INTERMEDIATE (A2-B1)

THE GREAT
GROUNDHOG

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1 Warm up
In pairs, discuss the following questions.

1. Do you like animals? Are you a fan of big ones or small ones?
2. When was the last time you visited a forest? Did you see any animals there?
3. What is your favourite season? Why do you like that one?
4. Do you think it is possible to predict when winter is going to end?

2 Visual guide
Look at the images related to groundhogs. Match the names to the correct pictures.
acorn bobcat bugs burrow
great horned owl rodent squirrel weasel

1. 2. 3. 4.

5. 6. 7. 8.
Answer the following questions.

1. Which of the animals above do you like the most? Why?

2. Do you know any interesting facts about these animals?
3. Do you like bugs? Why do you think so many people hate them?
4. Do you know any food that can be made out of acorns? What’s your favourite type of nut?

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3 Focus on vocabulary 1

You are going to listen to or watch a short video about the groundhog. Before you listen, match the
words to the definitions below.

1. habitat (n) a. animals that kill and eat other animals

2. meadows (n) b. mainly, essentially

3. spot (v) c. animals that only eat plants

4. primarily (adv.) d. a place where a particular animal is usually found

5. herbivores (n) e. fields covered in grass

6. predators (n) f. in danger, at risk of something bad happening

7. threatened (adj.) g. see or notice something, usually suddenly

4 Listening for details

Audio Listen to or watch a short video about the groundhog and answer these questions.

1. Which continent do groundhogs come from originally?

Video
2. Where can you see populations of groundhogs?

3. What is a groundhog’s usual diet?

4. What are two other names for the groundhog?

5. How much time do groundhogs spend underground?

5 Practical English

Look at the expressions from the audio. With your partner, guess the meaning of each one from the
context. Then, to help you remember the expressions, have a chat with your partner, and use them
to talk about your life.

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THE GREAT GROUNDHOG

• "You probably think of a mouse, a rat or a lovely squirrel nibbling on a little acorn..."
• "... if they come across some bugs while eating their leaves, they will gobble them down..."

1. What is your favourite snack to nibble on?

2. When you are really hungry, what kind of food do you like to gobble down?

6 Focus on vocabulary 2

Part A: Match the words and phrases in bold to their correct definitions.

1. The restaurant was praised by local food experts.

2. My dad’s outlook was always a little bit negative.

3. I was looking out of my window last night and I saw a badger eating out of the bin.

4. I asked my mum if I could get a pet hedgehog, but she told me a hamster would be safer.

5. The original church roof was well preserved.

6. He gave his interview to a journalist from the press.

7. They were predicting a period of prolonged rain this spring.

8. Due to the cute little buildings, it really is one of the most charming villages in the country.

a. (adj.) continuing for a long time

b. (n) a small animal with needles (spines) on its back that rolls into a ball when it is attacked.

c. (v) made sure that something was kept

d. (v) say that you admired somebody/something

e. (n) large black and white animal, that sleeps during the day and lives in a burrow

f. (adj.) very pleasant and attractive

g. (n) the newspapers or radio and television news broadcasting

h. (n) attitude to life of a particular person or group

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Part B: Put the words from above into the conversation questions below and then discuss them with
your partner. The form of the word might need to be changed.

1. Do you like big scary animals or little cute ones like ?

2. Would you prefer to go to a big, busy city or a , little town?

3. Were you more by your mum or your dad?

4. Would you like to work as a reporter in the or on TV?

5. What old building in your country would you like to see ?

7 Skimming for general understanding

Read the following paragraph titles for the article on page six and match them to the correct paragraph.
Two titles are not needed.

1. Follow the leader

2. Groundhog sandwich
3. Usually longer winters
4. A popular movie
5. German predictions
6. European similarities
7. Newspaper stories
8. The birth of Groundhog Day
9. Groundhog versus beaver

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THE GREAT GROUNDHOG

The day of the groundhog

The story behind an American tradition

A. In 1993, the film Groundhog Day was released and was extremely popular. The movie was
praised for its positive outlook and while it made everyone who watched it laugh, it also brought attention to one
of the most charming and longest-running traditions in the USA.

B. It is thought that the ceremony began in Germany in the 16th century and was used to predict
when winter would end. The Germans would pick a wild creature from a selection which included badgers and
hedgehogs and if the sun was bright enough to be able to see the animals shadow it meant there would be 40
more days of winter. However, if the animal couldn’t see its shadow, it would mean that winter was going to end
soon.

C. In the 18th century a few hundred people from Germany followed Jakob Ammann, a Swiss
religious leader and settled in Pennsylvania. Over the years the people who lived there preserved many cultural
beliefs from Europe and became a group who are known as the Pennsylvania Dutch or the Pennsylvania Germans.

D. The Pennsylvania Dutch were and are very proud of where they come from. They want to
celebrate and honour a number of their old traditions and that is how Grundsaudaag was born.

E. Grundsaudaag was similar to their old spring predicting ceremony from Europe, but it had to
involve an animal which wasn’t native to Germany and that is how the groundhog got its chance.

F. Groundhog Day is now linked to the attractive little town of Punxsutawney in Pennsylvania.
The importance of this town in relation to Groundhog Day is because it was written about in 1886 when a local
newspaper printed a story about the event that included the line "up to the time of going to press, the beast has
not seen its shadow".

G. These days the pressure of predicting an early spring is down to only one groundhog-
Punxsutawney Phil. Every year on the 2nd of February, Phil emerges to an audience of hundreds all hoping to
hear that winter is coming to an end soon. Unfortunately, records show that over the years the groundhog has
seen his shadow 107 times and not seen his shadow 20 times, meaning that winter has been prolonged a lot more
than it has been shortened.

sources: wikipedia.org, bbc.com, pressherald.com, usatoday.com, thenewstribune.com

8 Reading for comprehension

Read the following statements and decide if they are true (T) or false (F).

1. Groundhog Day was a funny movie.

2. If they could see the animal’s shadow, it meant spring was coming earlier.

3. Less than 1000 people came with Jakob Ammann to the USA.

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THE GREAT GROUNDHOG

4. The Pennsylvania Dutch don’t care about where they originally come from.

5. They chose to use a groundhog because there had been lots of them in Germany.

6. Punxsutawney is an important place in relation to groundhogs.

7. Phil’s prediction happens in the first half of the year.

8. In Punxsutawney, the groundhog usually doesn’t see its shadow.

9 Talking point

Look at the questions below and discuss them with your partner.

1. What did you think of the article? What was the most interesting thing?
2. Do you think it is possible for a groundhog to predict the end of winter?
3. Why do you think it was important for the Pennsylvania Dutch to remember their traditions from
Europe?
4. Are there any traditions involving animals in your country? Can you describe them?

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