Meet Punxsutawney Phil

<h1>Meet Punxsutawney Phil</h1>Author: <a title="Mimi Rothschild" href="http://www.articlesbase.com/authors/mimi-rothschild/21745.htm">Mimi Rothschild</a> Punxsutawney Phil is a groundhog of epic celebrity. A groundhog is a rodent of the family Sciuridae. Also known as a marmot, whistlepig, or woodchuck, the groundhog eats wild greens and infuriates farmers by digging up or eating their crops. More than any other woodland creature, Phil inspires delight in the hearts of children and adults. He has been doing this each February 2 for over 120 years! This groundhog has an interesting story. Phil is no ordinary groundhog.

The Delaware Indians named a small town in Pennsylvania after the copious population of sandflies. The Indian word for sandfly is Punxsutawney. About 150 years later, the Punxsutawney Spirit newspaper dubbed a groundhog Punxsutawney Phil, Seer of Seers, Sage of Sages, Prognosticator of Prognosticators, and Weather Prophet Extraordinary”. This was in keeping with the Candlemas tradition during which members of the society would look to forest creatures to determine the coming weather.

Every year since then, Punxsutawney Phil (there have most certainly been dozens of groundhogs given this name) is celebrated and observed on Gobbler’s Knob to report the next six weeks of weather. Obviously, everyone understands that the groundhog’s prediction is not scientifically accurate. Today’s Groundhog Day is just for fun.

Phil isn’t the only famous prognosticating groundhog. There’s also Wiarton Willie, Brandon Bob, Grundoon, Muldoon, and Sand Dune, Balzac Billie, Staten Island Chuck, Gary the Groundhog, Shubenacadie Sam, and several other North American Groundhog Day mascots. In 1956, Mac McKenzie became the first human weather predictor on Groundhog Day in Canada. Punxsutawney’s tourism board insists that the other groundhogs are just jealous imposters. According to them, Phil is the only groundhog whose prognostication can be trusted.

About the Author: Mimi Rothschild is a homeschooling mother, writer, children’s rights advocate, and Founder and C.E.O. of home education company Learning by Grace, Inc. She and her husband of 28 years reside with their 8 children right outside Philadelphia, PA. 
 
Rothschild launched Learning By Grace, Inc. because she believed that our nation’s public school system has failed parents and students. Learning By Grace, Inc. offers online education through a multimedia-rich curriculum to PreK-12 children across the country and throughout the world. 
 
An accomplished author, Rothschild has written books regarding education published by McGraw Hill and others. Her Daily Education News Feed consists of articles and essays dealing with alternative learning methods.Article Source: <a href="http://www.articlesbase.com/">ArticlesBase.com</a> - <a href="http://www.articlesbase.com/homeschooling-articles/meet-punxsutawney-phil-141255.html" title="Meet Punxsutawney Phil">Meet Punxsutawney Phil</a>

Punxsutawney Phil is a groundhog of epic celebrity. A groundhog is a rodent of the family Sciuridae. Also known as a marmot, whistlepig, or woodchuck, the groundhog eats wild greens and infuriates farmers by digging up or eating their crops. More than any other woodland creature, Phil inspires delight in the hearts of children and adults. He has been doing this each February 2 for over 120 years! This groundhog has an interesting story. Phil is no ordinary groundhog.

The Delaware Indians named a small town in Pennsylvania after the copious population of sandflies. The Indian word for sandfly is Punxsutawney. About 150 years later, the Punxsutawney Spirit newspaper dubbed a groundhog Punxsutawney Phil, Seer of Seers, Sage of Sages, Prognosticator of Prognosticators, and Weather Prophet Extraordinary”. This was in keeping with the Candlemas tradition during which members of the society would look to forest creatures to determine the coming weather.

Every year since then, Punxsutawney Phil (there have most certainly been dozens of groundhogs given this name) is celebrated and observed on Gobbler’s Knob to report the next six weeks of weather. Obviously, everyone understands that the groundhog’s prediction is not scientifically accurate. Today’s Groundhog Day is just for fun.

Phil isn’t the only famous prognosticating groundhog. There’s also Wiarton Willie, Brandon Bob, Grundoon, Muldoon, and Sand Dune, Balzac Billie, Staten Island Chuck, Gary the Groundhog, Shubenacadie Sam, and several other North American Groundhog Day mascots. In 1956, Mac McKenzie became the first human weather predictor on Groundhog Day in Canada. Punxsutawney’s tourism board insists that the other groundhogs are just jealous imposters. According to them, Phil is the only groundhog whose prognostication can be trusted.

Mimi Rothschild is a homeschooling mother, writer, children’s rights advocate, and Founder and C.E.O. of home education company Learning by Grace, Inc. She and her husband of 28 years reside with their 8 children right outside Philadelphia, PA.

Rothschild launched Learning By Grace, Inc. because she believed that our nation’s public school system has failed parents and students. Learning By Grace, Inc. offers online education through a multimedia-rich curriculum to PreK-12 children across the country and throughout the world.

An accomplished author, Rothschild has written books regarding education published by McGraw Hill and others. Her Daily Education News Feed consists of articles and essays dealing with alternative learning methods.

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Article Tags: Online Education, Home Schooling, Homeschooling, Online Homeschooling, Christian Homeschooling

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