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How to Celebrate Chinese New Year with Preschoolers
Discover Fun Ways to Celebrate Chinese New Year with Preschoolers. In this article, we provide a few ideas about how to celebrate Chinese New Year with preschoolers.
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Known also as “The Spring Festival”, the Chinese New Year is the most important holiday in China and an excellent opportunity to teach children about the rich culture and traditions of Chinese civilisation.
In this article, we provide a few ideas about how to celebrate Chinese New Year with preschoolers.
What is Chinese New Year?
Chinese New Year marks the beginning of a new year in the Chinese calendar, and its celebration can last up to 15 days.
In 2024, the Chinese New Year will be on the 10th of February, starting the year of the Dragon. This event is celebrated in regions like the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, North America and Europe.
Chinese New Year is when families honour their ancestors, clean their homes to chase away ill-fortunes, attract good luck and share moments like decorating doors and windows with red paper-cuts or eating dumplings.
The traditions of this event provide an excellent source for making children aware of the diversity and beauty of the world around them.
How to Celebrate Chinese New Year with Preschoolers
Here are our suggestions for activities to celebrate Chinese New Year with preschoolers.
Dancing dragon puppet
Easy to make, this dragon puppet requires a few materials and provides lots of fun for preschoolers who can learn about Chinese New Year traditions while playing.
Materials you need:
- 1 white paper plate
- 1 zip-lock plastic bag or paint brushes
- 1 strip of red card, A4 size, cut in half and taped together
- Gold and red poster paint
- 2 lollipop sticks
- 2 googly eyes
- Glue
How to make a dancing dragon puppet:
Sprinkle gold and red paint onto the paper plate and put it inside the zip-lock bag. Spread the paint across the plate with the help of your fingers, take it out of the bag and let it dry. Alternatively, use paint brushes to paint the paper plate.
Fold the plate in half and then draw a zig-zag line to split it into two parts – one bigger and one smaller. The bigger part will be the head, and the smaller one will be the tail. Draw a few small triangles on the head. Cut along the splitting line.
Fold the red card backwards and forwards to obtain a zig-zag. Draw a mouth on the head of the dragon and add the googly eyes.
Glue the head and the tail to each end of the zig-zag red strip and add the lollipop sticks to its bottom – one under the head section, the other under the tail section.
The dragon is ready! Your preschoolers can make him dance with funny or scary moves while you tell them about the significance of the dragon in Chinese New Year.
Activity adapted from Messy Little Monster.
Writing in sand
Writing is essential during the preschool years, and writing in the sand is a fun activity that will spark interest in learning about Chinese characters. This sensory experience will delight the little ones and will help you teach them about Chinese culture.
Materials you need:
- 1 rectangular tray
- Red sand
- 1 paint brush
- Gold glitter
- 1 book for preschoolers about the Chinese New Year containing a few Chinese characters
How to set up the activity:
Place the tray on a large, clear surface with the paintbrush and the book.
Pour the sand into the tray, and add the glitter.
Show the children how to write with their fingers a Chinese character found in the book and then encourage them to do the same. Start a conversation about Chinese writing and Chinese New Year and talk about its traditions and significance. Use accessible language, and keep the children engaged by asking what is their favourite Chinese New Year tradition.
Activity adapted from Rainy Day Mum.
Chinese New Year drums
Bolang Gu, or Chinese drums, are musical instruments often used to give more life to a story or a song. Their unique sound delights children, and making them from scratch is an excellent way to celebrate Chinese New Year with preschoolers.
Materials you need:
- 2 red paper plates, size 18-24 cm
- 2 ribbons, strings or cords 18 cm long each
- 4 small plastic beads
- 1 dowel of 3/8”, 10 – 12” long
- 1 stapler
- White glue
- 1 hole puncher
- Stickers reading “Good Luck” in English and Chinese characters.
How to make Chinese New Year drums:
Staple the paper plates around the edges and leave a small space to insert the dowel.
Decorate the plates with the stickers any way you want
Punch holes at 3 & 9 o’clock
Put the ribbons, strings or cords through the holes you made.
Thread the beads and tie the knot at the end of the ribbons.
Insert the dowel, place a little glue into each of its sides and turn it to spread.
Wait for the glue to dry, hold the dowel between your hands and rub them together to turn the dowel.
When the beads hit the faces of the drum, they will create that unmistakable sound that children love so much! While children have fun playing the drums, you can tell them interesting facts about the Chinese New Year.
Activity adapted from Pre K + K Sharing.
Painting fireworks with cardboard rolls
Fireworks are a central element of the Chinese New Year celebration, and with help, your preschooler can turn this into an exciting art project!
Materials you need:
- Cardboard rolls
- 4 different colours of paint
- 4 paper plates
- Large paper sheets
- Glitter
How to paint fireworks with cardboard rolls
Cut the cardboard rolls into thin, different-length strips, but without exceeding the middle of the rolls. The uncut part of the rolls will serve as a “handle” that children will hold when painting to prevent colours from getting on their fingers. The different lengths of the strips will create various-sized fireworks.
Place each colour of paint onto a different paper plate. Dip one cardboard tube into the paint and print it on paper. Use another cardboard (with strips of different lengths) to create another layer of fireworks. Repeat the process until the children are happy with the look of their fireworks. Spread a bit of glitter on top to give the fireworks their sparkly effect.
While the preschoolers work on the project, share exciting facts about the Chinese New Year and its celebration. Leave the paper sheets to dry and display them in a place of your child’s choosing.
This activity enables preschoolers to use their creativity, train fine motor skills, develop hand-eye coordination, recognise colours and create new ones.
Activity adapted from Learning 4 Kids.
Chinese traditions have always sparked the interest of people around the world. The uniqueness of this ancient civilisation can be taught to preschoolers during Chinese New Year, and one or more of the activities listed in this article will surely help you convey to children the complexity and beauty residing in this Asian culture.
If you are in Auckland or Hamilton, check out our “14 Fun Toddler Activities in Auckland” or “9 Fun Toddler Activities in Hamilton” articles for ideas over Chinese New Year!
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