Chinese New Year Activities and Books
Chinese New Year celebrates the first day of the first month on the Chinese calendar and it is the most important traditional Chinese holiday. The celebration lasts until the 15th day which is also the day of the Lantern Festival. The dates of Chinese New Year move each year, but are always between January 21st and February 20th. This year Chinese New Year will be celebrated on February 12th 2021. Each year also has an animal associated with it and 2021 is the Year of the Ox! Help your child celebrate this important holiday with these Chinese New Year activities and books.
How is Chinese New Year celebrated?
The entire first week of Chinese New Year is a national holiday in China and many people take holidays from work for the week. The most important celebration is on the night before the start of Chinese New Year when there are large parties and fireworks. New Year is also an important time for Chinese people to celebrate with their family and to honour their elder members such as parents and grandparents.
- During the celebrations, a Dragon Dance is sometimes performed. A large dragon is made from material and a group of people carry it using poles, making the dragon appear to move through the streets.
- Traditionally, red envelopes filled with money are often handed out as presents to children and newly married couples. There is always an even amount of money given as an odd number symbolizes bad luck.
- An important ritual around New Year is thoroughly cleaning the house to get rid of any bad luck left from the previous year.
- Large fireworks displays and smaller firecrackers are lit because ancient people believed that the loud noises would scare away evil spirits.
Fun Facts About Chinese New Year:
- The most famous greeting on Chinese New Year is “Kung Hei Fat Choy” meaning “We hope you get rich”.
- Dragons are the symbol of Chinese New Year because they represents good fortune and good luck.
- Some fruits and flowers are considered lucky such as tangerines, peach blossoms, and kumquat trees.
- The holiday is celebrated in several Chinatowns in cities across the world in major cities such as New York City, San Francisco and London.
- Most of the Chinese New Year decorations are red because the colour is believed to symbolise joy and happiness.
Chinese New Year Craft Ideas for Children:
Year of the Ox Roll Craft:
This fun and easy craft is a great way to celebrate the Year of the Ox.
Materials: an empty toilet paper tube; brown paint or paper; googly eyes; orange, pink and grey coloured paper; yellow and black markers; scissors and glue.
Chinese Dragon Egg Carton Craft:
Create your own Chinese dragon with simple materials from home.
Materials: an empty toilet paper tube; an empty egg carton, green paint or paper; googly eyes; orange, yellow and red coloured paper; a black marker; scissors and glue.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMWOrpmGl9g
Chinese Dragon Colouring Masks:
Choose between a simple mask or a more complex design. Print the Chinese Dragon Colouring Mask template and glue onto thicker card paper. Colour in the design using traditional colours, cut out the eyes (and mouth in number 2) and attach string or elastic to each side to create a mask.
Chinese New Year Printable Worksheets for Children:
Chinese New Year Sentence Scramble:
Chinese Lantern Addition and Subtraction:
Chinese New Year Animals:
Recommended Chinese New Year Books for Children:
Busy Chinese New Year Board Book
In this Busy Chinese New Year board book, children will enjoy the push, pull and slide features to discover facts about this holiday. The story describes the celebrations as well as the Lion and Dragon dance, a family banquet and an amazing fireworks display. This board book is durable for little hands and the bright, colourful illustrations will capture the attention of younger children. The text is written in a gentle rhyming scheme which makes it a great choice as a read aloud book.
Peppa’s Chinese New Year Board Book
Using familiar characters is a great way of introducing new ideas and information. In this classic Peppa book, it is Chinese New Year and Madame Gazelle is teaching the children all about this very special celebration. Peppa and George and their friends make Chinese New Year cards, try tasty Chinese treats and even take part in their very own dragon parade! This is a lovely story using all your child’s favourite Peppa characters is perfect way to teach little ones all about Chinese New Year.
Winnie and Wilbur at Chinese New Year
The Winnie and Wilbur series of books are bestsellers across the world. In this edition, Winnie and Wilbur decide to celebrate Chinese New Year and their party organising is in full swing. They have thought of everything – family; friends; food; entertainment! But just when Winnie waves her wand to make parade costumes for everyone, Wilbur goes missing. Will Winnie find him before the first firework lights up the sky? This edition includes an audio CD with an entertaining narrated version of the story including music and sound effects.
Enjoy Chinese New Year Activities and Books!
Chinese New Year gives us a chance to show our children how different cultures celebrate New Years. If you have time, discuss other cultures/religions that celebrate New Years at a different time of year. What traditions are followed in these celebration?