1-2-3 Come Do Some Chinese New Year Activities With Me.

Chinese New Year starts February 19th this year, and runs for 15 days.  I know some of you will quickly dismiss Chinese New Year, as something you want to make time for this February, because you feel you don't have any time to plug in one more thing to an already overloaded schedule.  

However, even if you don't have time for an entire theme day, many of the following activities can quickly and easily be added to what you're already doing.   If nothing else, simply read several books about Chinese New Year during your story time, and have children locate Asia and China on a map.  My Y5's were absolutely fascinated.

If you need some help finding a story, click on the link for a list of 53 of my all-time favorite Chinese books.  I think you'll find it quite helpful, as it's a comprehensive annotated bibliography, where I explain and comment on each book. 

You could also wish children a "Gong Hey Fat Choy!"  (pronounced gung-she-fah-tie) Happy Chinese New Year, instead of greeting them with "Good morning" as they walk in the door.

One of the  4 Chinese bookmarks I've designed, has this greeting written on it.  These could be left as a little surprise in their desks, or passed out to on-task students during reading. 

One of our favorite Chinese stories was  Tikki Tikki Tembo.  My Y5’s were delighted when I repeated Tikki’s very long "full" name, and wanted to learn it themselves.  Click on the link for an excellent animated version of this popular folktale.

Another wonderful YouTube video fairytale, is The Story of Nian a mythological, half lion-half dragon creature.  It’s just 3 minutes long and explains the meaning behind many of the Chinese New Year beliefs.

Another simple way to add a splash of China to your day, is by playing some  soothing Chinese music while your students work.  There's something very calming in the melodic music that chinese instruments create. 

I'm listening to "Music From The Tea Lands" as I blog.  It's especially meaningful because 2 of our sons were born in Korea.  If you don't have a CD, click on the link to hear 25 minutes of tranquil sounds from China.

Chinese New Year (2015) is the year of the sheep.  My students wanted to know what animal was featured the year that they were born, so I included a list in the Chinese New Year Animal Game Card packet. 

Finding the answer, is another quick, easy and fun way to add a sprinkle of Chinese New Year to your day.  You can also have students play Memory Match or I Have; Who Has? games with the cards. 

There are 11 sets of cards.  Children can match animals to animals, animals to their symbols, or animal cards to word cards. 

The packet includes background information about Chinese New Year, a list of what the animal traits are, along with the years that they were the special animal + a spinner game.  For a discussion or writing prompt, students could share if those animal traits fit their personalities or not. 

Are your kiddos working on counting and number identification? Why not take a few minutes to teach them how to count to 10 in Chinese? To help you, I designed some Chinese and English number cards, so children can play a variety of games. 

The packet also includes an anchor chart that shows the order of "brush" strokes, as well as helpful links, so students can see, hear, and learn how to write the numbers. 

It's quick, easy and fun; my Y5's were amazed.  I think they just assumed everyone wrote numbers like they did.

One of the sites tells you how to ask a person their phone number in Chinese.

Since my Y5s were working on learning their phone number, I thought that would be a really fun activity for students, so I made a recording sheet.  There's also one for students to write their age on. 

You can introduce these lessons by reading a Chinese counting book.  I've included 3 suggestions. 

Click on the link to view/download the Let's Count In Chinese,Number Card Packet. 

 Also math related, are these 9 Chinese puzzles that will help your students practice counting forwards, backwards, as well as skip counting by 10s to 100.  Set them up as an independent center for early finishers. 

Another fun way to add a bit of Asian flavor to your day, is with these Chinese dragon alphabet cards.  Use them as flashcards, an independent center or for some group games. 

I've included a 3-page tip list of things you can do with the cards.  After laminating, cut up an extra set and make puzzles. Click on the link to view/download the Chinese dragon alphabet cards.

Finally, if you have snack time, add a Chinese fortune cookie to the mix. What does the word fortune mean? Who can read theirs?  What do they think of the fortune?  If you have time, have them write a fortune they'd like to have and share it with a friend.  

Still looking for more ideas? Click on the link, if you'd like to see all of the Chinese New Year FREEBIES on TeachWithMe.   I also have an entire board for Chinese New Year on Pinterest.  For a fun, Chinese riddle lantern craftivity, scroll down to take a look at the next blog article.

 Well that's it for today.  Thanks for visiting.  I hope you're able to add a splash of Chinese New Year to your daily activities to spice things up. Wishing you a relaxing day, filled with memorable moments. 

"A nation's treasure is in its scholars." - Chinese proverbs

1-2-3 Come Make A Chinese Lantern With Me

I had an absolute blast visiting China from the comfort of my own home these  past few days.  Mother Nature is hurling winter at my window, while I, snug in warm PJ's, flit around the world in my desk chair.  Today I'm experiencing China's spectacular Lantern Festival. 

Because of my voracious appetite to learn new things, I LOVE doing research, and am extremely grateful to people who make the time to share their knowledge, creative gifts and photographs to help others.

Whenever I'm designing a new packet, I like to find out the "how" and "why" of what I'm doing.  As teachers, it's extremely important to have a wealth of trivia floating around in one's head that you can share with your students, making things more interesting and factual.

 Inevitably some child will ask: "Why are lanterns so popular in China?"  "Why is red one of their favorite colors?"  "How did the Lantern Festival start?" I wanted to know too, so I spent several hours Online going on an Asian Internet adventure to find out. 

After searching, reading, and carefully cross-checking where possible, I came up with all sorts of information about China's lanterns, as well as their Lantern Festival.  I found it all very fascinating and especially enjoyed the various folktales behind their traditions, which date back 1,000's of years!

I made a list of my favorite Chinese New Year YouTube videos, so your kiddos can experience a Lion Dance, a Dragon Dance, stilt walkers, zillions of floating lanterns drifting up into the sky, and other aspects of this fabulous celebration, that will make things real and exciting for them.  Click on the link for the 29-page  Chinese Paper Lantern Packet.

One of China's most popular lanterns is the riddle lantern; it's an integral part of their pageantry.  If you have the time, making this Chinese paper lantern is a quick, easy and fun craftivity that helps students practice their cutting skills.

Solving riddles is another simple way to add a bit of Chinese New Year flavor to your day. Here's how:

Paper lanterns are relatively inexpensive at party stores.  Purchase 2 or 3 and hang them from the ceiling.  Write the riddles on strips of yellow paper. 

Dangle some lengths of string or curling ribbon from the base of the lanterns and attach enough riddles for each student to have one.  As they walk through the door and see these swirling and twirling globes decorated with yellow strips of paper they will be all a-buzz.

 Wish them a "Gong Hey Fat Choy!"  (pronounced gung-she-fah-tie) Happy Chinese New Year, then give them time to exercise their brains via riddles. 

To make this easy for you, I made a list of over 90 riddles that I thought your students would enjoy.  Some are simple, some a bit more difficult; all are thought-provoking.   Read through the list and decide what is age-appropriate for your kiddos then use those on your riddle lantern(s).  Click on the link for the Chinese Paper Lantern Craftivity.

Well that's it for today.  Thanks for visiting.  Even though February is not quite over, it's time to start planning for March is Reading Month. I hope the work that I do, helps save you time, and alleviates a bit of stress from your life. 

I truly enjoy reading any comments about the materials I provide and how you've used them. Wishing you a wonderful day.

"A gem is not polished without rubbing, nor a man perfected without trials." - Chinese proverb

1-2-3 Come Do Some More Chinese New Year Activities With Me

Chinese New Year starts the 31st, but you have plenty of time to plug in some cultural social studies, as the festivities run for 15 days, ending on Valentines Day this year. 

Why not teach your kiddos how to count to 10 in Chinese? To help you, I designed some Chinese and English number cards, so children can play Memory Match and "I Have; Who Has?" games. 

The packet also includes an anchor chart that shows the order of "brush" strokes, as well as helpful links so students can see and hear the numbers. 

One of the sites tells you how to ask a person their phone number in Chinese. 

I thought that would be a really fun activity for students, so I made a recording sheet.  There's also one for students to write their age on. 

Introduce these lessons by reading a Chinese counting book.  I've included 3 suggestions. 

Click on the link to view/download the Let's Count In Chinese,Number Card Packet. 

If you're studying money right now, it would be interesting for your students to compare US currency with China's.  The renminbi (RMB)  (pronounced like the letters) is their official currency.

You may also have heard of the yuan, (pronounced you-en) which is the basic unit of the renminbi, but is also used as a synonym for China's currency, especially in international contexts, sort of like England's Brittish Sterling and the pound.

Since currency rates change daily, click on the link to visit the China Tour site; here students can type in a US dollar amount and have it converted to Chinese yuan. 

Currently, the Chinese yuan is worth .15 cents in US money, and 100 US dollars is 664.0 yuan.  I've made up a Chinese Currency packet that you'll find helpful.  

It includes 2 Venn diagrams, so students can compare and contrast Chinese currency with ours.

I've also included some templates for their paper money.  It's a Chinese tradition to give money to children during Chinese New Year. 

They place it in red envelopes for good luck.   You could print some of this money off and include it inside a red envelope for your students.

Most office supply stores sell red envelopes, and after Christmas they go on sale 50% off.  As with the 100 dollar bill for 100-Day, you could substitute your students' photo on the money. 

Use them as "behavior bucks" where students earn them throughout the day, as they accomplish various tasks, and then "convert" them for a priviledge or trip to your treasure box.  Click on the link to view/download the Chinese Currency Packet.

Also math related, are these 9 Chinese puzzles that will help your students practice counting forwards, backwards and by 10's.

I'm thrilled to add another graphics artist to our activities.  Along with Laura Strickland and DJ Inkers, you'll be seeing the adorable work from Scrappin Doodles.  Click on the link to view/download the Chinese New Year puzzle packet.

Finally, I designed some incentives or prizes that you can make and give to your students, to add to the excitement of your Chinese New Year celebration.  

Purchase a pack of sparkly pencils at The Dollar store, print off these toppers, trim, cut slits and insert the pencil. 

Challenge students to collect all three designs as they accomplish tasks, or play games. The Chinese symbols on the 1st one say "Happy New Year."  The teapot says: U R T rific! and the dragon says Happy Chinese New Year.

Click on the link to view/download the Chinese New Year Pencil Topper Packet.

Another inexpensive treat that you can give your kiddos, is a lollipop note.  There are 5 designs to choose from.  Print them off, cut slits and insert a lollipop. My personal favorite is the fan, which says, "I hope your New Year is fantastic."

Because of Valentines Day, The Dollar Store is carrying red heart lollipops, perfect for Chinese New Year too, because red is such an important color in China.   Click on the link to view/download the Chinese New Year Lollipop Notes. 

Last, but not least, I always enjoyed making treat bags for my Y5's.  This can be your snack, an incentive, or prize.  There are 5 headers to choose from.

I've photographed the treats that I put in mine.  Click on the link to view/download the Chinese New Year Treat Bag Headers.

Thanks for visiting today.  I have lots more to share, so I hope you can pop by tomorrow.  I'll be finishing up with some adorable crafty Chinese New Year FREEBIES.  Feel free to PIN away.

"One joy scatters a hundred griefs." -Chinese Proverb

1-2-3 Come Do Some Chinese New Year Activities and Crafts With Me.

There never seems to be enough time in the teaching day, so things like social studies and science don't get covered all that much anymore, if at all.  This is truly a sad state of affairs, because our children are not as well-rounded as they used to be, when life was simpler and no one ever heard of CCSS or standardized testing.

For this reason, I really try hard to design things that cover the standards, while at the same time plugging in a few of the more fun extras.  One of my Y5's favorite theme days was our Chinese New Year celebration.  It was a great way to have my students learn about, compare and contrast another country.  They were fascinated. 

Even if you don't have time for an entire unit, many of the following activities can quickly and easily be added to your day.   If nothing else, simply read several books about Chinese New Year during your story time, and have children locate Asia and China on a map.  

If you need some help finding a story, click on the link for a list of 53 of my all-time favorite Chinese books.  

I think you'll find it quite helpful, as it's a comprehensive annotated bibliography, where I explain and comment on each book. 

It took me zillions of hours to put it together, and that was after I spent some time sorting through my huge collection, but I thought it was time well-spent, as most people are not that familiar with multi-cultural books.    

I've also designed 4 Chinese bookmarks to pass out to your kiddos.  Click on the link to check them out.  

You can find a few of these stories being read on YouTube as well. A personal favorite, is Tikki Tikki Tembo.  

My Y5’s were delighted when I repeated  Tikki’s very long full name, and wanted to learn it themselves.  Click on the link for an excellent animated version of this popular folktale.

Another wonderful YouTube fairytale video is The Story of Nian. It’s just 3 minutes and explains the meaning behind many of the Chinese New Year beliefs, because of this mythological half lion-half dragon.

This year, Chinese New Year is being celebrated on Friday, January 31st and runs for 15 days, which ends on our Valentine's Day, so there's plenty of time to try and fit something cultural into your lessons.  

It's the year of the horse, so if you do an animal unit, your students will enjoy learning about the Chinese zodiac creatures.

The Chinese typically don't refer to this celebration as Chinese New Year; instead, the festivities are known as Spring Festival 春節 or Lunar New Year 農曆新年 because their year is determined by the Lunar Calendar. 

The Chinese aren't the only ones who observe it either. From late January to mid-February, Korea, Vietnam, Japan and other countries celebrate Lunar New Year too.

A fun way to add a bit of Asian flavor to your day, is with these Chinese dragon alphabet cards.  Use them as flashcards, a bulletin board boarder, independent center or for group games. 

I've included a 3-page tip list of things you can do with the cards.  After laminating, cut up an extra set and make puzzles. Click on the link to view/download the Chinese dragon alphabet cards.

Although China does not have a set of alphabetical letters like we do, it is possible to write your students' names in Chinese. 

I found an awesome site "Free Chinese Name Translations" where you simply type in your kiddos names and they appear in lovely Chinese characters!  The photo shows what my name looks like. 

I copy and pasted my family's names in a document, so that I could shrink or enlarge them.  I had such a great time diddling around here; my brain was going 90-miles an hour, thinking of fun things I could do with these.

A few names "could not be found" (my sister Kathie, for example) but you could adjust the spelling and see if that helps. Kathy did work.  I simply corrected the spelling on my copy.  If that doesn't work, you could also try a child's middle name.

These can be made into bookmarks, a certificate of praise, nametag, flag, greeting card, lantern, fan, or shrunk to make the center tag for a necklace, button, or magnet.  The photo shows the fan I made. 

To make one, enlarge the name card that you made, by cutting and pasting it into a Word or Pages document.  I dragged the image to the full size of the length of the paper.  Leave at least 2-3 inches of white border on the bottom when you cut it out, or your name won't show up.

When students are done, staple the bottom and gently pull apart.  "Fan-folding" is an excellent fine motor skill that my Y5's really enjoyed doing.

Another quick activity your kiddo's could do when they were done with lessons, is to color a Chinese picture.  Click on the link for the Chinese ChildBook site. 

It has a large variety of Chinese New Year prints including these cute little Chinese children.  Any of them could also be folded to make a prety fan.

Another simple way to add a splash of China to your day, is by playing some of their soothing music while your students work.  There's something very calming in the melodic music that chinese instruments create. 

I'm listening to "Music From The Tea Lands" as I blog.  It's especially meaningful because 2 of our sons were born in Korea.  If you don't have a CD, click on the link to hear 25 minutes of tranquil sounds from China.

As your students come through the door, wish them a Happy New Year in Chinese, and then teach them how to say: " Gong Hey Fat Choy." (gung-she-fah-tie) 

After several hours of research, I made up a page of information that includes several ways to say Happy New Year in Chinese, as well as links for you to hear how it should sound, plus the Chinese characters that make up these greetings. 

There are also some great links of Chinese children singing Happy New Year.  This informational sheet is in the Chinese Bookmark packet. Click on the link to grab this FREEBIE. Choose which ever bookmark you like the best and tuck one in your students' desks or backpacks. 

That’s it for today.   I have so much more to share, but I don’t want these blog articles to get too long. Be sure and pop by tomorrow for some more great Chinese New Year Activities.  Feel free to PIN away.

“A child’s life is like a piece of paper on which every person leaves a mark.” –Chinese Proverb