Need Ideas for Lunar New Year in the Classroom?

We’ve got you covered!

The Lunar New Year is a festival celebrated by many cultures worldwide, including Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, and others. It is based on the lunar calendar, and the date changes yearly. The main celebration lasts for 15 days and includes traditional customs such as cleaning and decorating the house, preparing special foods, giving children red envelopes filled with money, and participating in parades and dragon dances.

To teach kids about the Lunar New Year, you can:

• Share stories and legends associated with the holiday
• Show them pictures and videos of the celebrations
• Cook and taste traditional foods together
• Make lanterns, decorations, or red envelopes together
• Introduce them to the zodiac animals, which include rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig.

It is also a good idea to explain the significance of the color red, which is often used during the Lunar New Year celebrations and is believed to bring good luck and ward off evil spirits.

Start With a Lunar New Year Book!

This mini-activity book is the perfect way to learn about the Lunar New Year with your class. Follow along with our Lunar New Year Slide Deck, or have your students research the answers to each question themselves!

Some of the activities in this mini-book include:

• When is the Lunar New Year 2023? When does the Chinese New Year Start?
• What are the different decorations used for the Lunar New Year?
• Which countries celebrate Lunar New Year?
• What are the traditional dinners and traditions families use during this cultural celebration?
• What are the 12 Zodiac Animals? 
• What animal year is 2023?

Download & Print Your Lunar New Year Activities

This resource is available to download in PDF or Google Slides. Pick the format that works best for you and your class.

This resource was created by Lisamarie Del Valle, a teacher in Florida and a Teach Starter Collaborator.