Celebrating Chinese New Year
Submitted by the staff at Childreach
Chinese New Year – the most festive time in the Chinese community – begins on February 5th, 2019. It’s the year of the pig!
Greetings of “Gung Hay Fat Choy!” are shared and red envelopes holding coins are passed out. You’ll see red everywhere on Chinese New Year. Red clothing is preferred since it’s a happy colour that’s sure to bring the wearer a sunny and bright future. Use the celebration to highlight the colour red with your child. Try picking out red clothing to wear for the holiday or play eye spy, only looking for red things around your home or on a walk
Dragon dance
Celebrate by doing the dragon dance with your children. Search YouTube to see some amazing dances.
Here are some verses to accompany your dragon dance. Use some felt dragon shapes on a felt board to enhance the rhymes. Or try making an egg carton dragon using the instructions at http://crafts.kaboose.com/dragon.html.
Five Green Dragons
Five green dragons making
such a roar
One danced away and then there
were four
Four green dragons dancing
’round a tree
Once danced away and then
there were three
Three green dragons dancing ’round you
One danced away and then there were two
Two green dragons dancing in the sun
One danced away and then there was one
One green dragon having lots of fun
She danced away
And then there were none
Here Comes the New Year (tune of Old McDonald Had a Farm)
Here comes the New Year marching round
E-I-E-I-O
And one of the years is the year of the rat
E-I-E-I-O With a squeak, squeak here and a squeak, squeak there, etc.
Cow, moo moo; tiger, grr grr; horse, neigh neigh; snake, hiss hiss; rabbit, sniff sniff; dragon, roar roar; sheep, baa baa; monkey, chee chee; dog, bow wow; rooster, cock a doodle do
Chinese New Year Dragon
There’s a great big dragon coming our way
A great big dragon on this holiday (march with others in a weaving line)
Let’s grab our lanterns and follow along Dancing and waving and singing a song (dance and wave while moving in a line)
There’s a great big dragon coming our way
Hip hip hurray!
Fireworks picture
Shooting off firecrackers on New Year’s Eve is the Chinese way of sending out the old year and welcoming in the New Year. Make your own picture of fireworks using liquid tempera paint, black construction paper, glitter, a pine bough, and a feather or nylon brush.
Dip the tips of the pine needles into one colour of paint, then brush the needles lightly upwards on the paper to simulate bursting fireworks. Repeat using a second colour and so on, until the paper is full of streaming colour. Sprinkle glitter on the painting while it’s still wet