Preschool and kindergarten Chinese New Year crafts and activities

February 7, 2008 — The Year of the Rat
For many people, Chinese New Year is the longest and most important celebration of the year. It is a time of celebration, dancing dragons, eating special foods, cleaning and decorating the house and streets with Chinese lanterns, giving gifts, fireworks, and getting ready for the coming year. It's a very colorful and joyous event. The Chinese calendar is based on the lunar year, so the date of the Chinese New Year changes every year. With your children, ring in the New Year with the following fun Chinese New Year Activities!

See our Free Chinese New Year crafts and activities

Samples of our NEW Chinese New Year unit at our KidsSoup Member Site:

Chinese Calendar Crafts and Activities	Chinese Dragon Crafts	Chinese New Year Word Wall	Chinese New Year Emergent Reader Booklet
Digraph ch Cards and Activities	Chinese New Year Coloring Pages	Dragon Artwork	Dragon Dance How many feet?
China Flag Coloring Page	Chinese New Year Bulleting Board Idea	Good Luck Banner Coloring	Lantern Craft
Year of the Rat Coloring Page and Crafts	Chinese Lantern Artwork	How to Catch a Dragon Writing Prompt	Fortune Cookies Digraph ch game
Lern to Write the Chinese Characters	Red Envelope Craft	Chinese Dragon Crafts	Chinese Dragon Coloring Page
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Free Chinese New Year Crafts and Activities

The Chinese Calendar
Explain to children that the Chinese Lunar Calendar is based on the cycles of the moon. Each year in a cycle is named after an animal. Legend says that Buddha invited all the animals to join him for a New Year’s celebration but only 12 showed up. They argued about who was to head the cycle of years, so Buddha held a race—whoever first reached the opposite bank of the river would be first, and the rest of the animals would receive their years according to their finish. The race began, but unknown to the ox, the rat had jumped upon his back. As the ox was about to jump ashore, the rat jumped off the ox’s back, and won the race. The pig, who was very lazy, finished last. That is why the rat is the first year of the animal cycle and the pig is the last. The Chinese believe the animal ruling the year in which a person is born has a strong influence on that person’s personality. Have children make their own Chinese calendar by using our patterns. Let them find their zodiac sign and see if the characteristics match their personality.

Activity
Make the sound of the Chinese calendar animals. Can you guess the animal?

Red Envelopes The New Year marks the birthday of every family member. During the Chinese New Year celebrations, people wear red clothes. Red symbolizes fire, which the Chinese believe drives away bad luck. Children receive good luck money in small red envelopes and everybody wears the newest clothes. In Chinese the word "fu," means "good luck. Feast of Lantern On the third day of the New Year, the Feast of the Lantern is celebrated. Lanterns of all shapes, sizes and colors decorate the streets and inside the homes.

Dragon Dance
Many cities hold parades which are lead by a huge dragon or lion. The Chinese have a great belief and respect towards dragon and believe the dragon is the symbol for good luck. In the Chinese legend the dragon is not a monster but a protector against evil spirits. He is the symbol of luck, goodness and strength. The lion is the symbol for protection and is thought to guard against danger. Children love to watch and join in with the parade and take part in the great Dragon Dance.

Activity
Chinese Ribbon Dance. Attach a crepe paper streamer to a chopstick or pencil. Play Chinese inspired music and have children dance around. Show a movement with the ribbon and have children copy it.