Celebrating Chinese New Year

This video is complete by Mrs Daley and Mr Liu. Thank you so much, Mrs Daley! Your voice is perfect! Thanks! Celebrating Chinese New Year: Nick's New Year Written by Rosa Drew and Heather Phillips Illustrated by Cheryl Kirk Noll About Chinese New Year China is one of many Asian countries to celebrate the new year with an elaborate festival. Vietnam, Korea and Japan are some of the other nations that have similar celebrations for this same occasion. In these cultures, the beginning of a new year is a time to tidy the house, give gifts, buy new clothes and hope for good luck in the upcoming year. The behaviours, ceremonies and images traditional on this occasion are symbolic of good luck and are observed in order to initiate a prosperous new year. This holiday falls in late January or early February because the cultures that celebrate it use a lunar calendar instead of the traditional Western calendar. Good-luck Envelopes / Red Packets / Lai Sees During Chinese New Year, children often receive gifts of money in red envelopes or red packets. Invite children to create their own envelopes by having them fold red construction paper in half and staple the sides. Then, provide pictures or cutouts of the following Chinese good-luck symbols: bamboo (strength and durability), dragon (strength and goodness), peaches (long life), cranes (longevity) and fish (wealth and abundance). Invite children to decorate their envelopes or Lai Sees (Chinese pronunciation of red packets) with these cutouts. Display the finished projects on a bulletin board titled Good Luck for the Chinese New Year.

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YouTube | September 25, 2008