CNY title
Chinese New Year (also known as Spring Festival, or Lunar New Year) is celebrated in many countries of the world. So this year some members of KBN decided to create a blog hop to commemorate this wonderful festival.
The year 2015 is the year of the Sheep (Goat or Ram). So in order to relate to this particular year, I have created an activity I made with children in my ESL classes: Chinese New Year Card. It is a simple and fun activity, aimed at children from the age of 3+ to 8 years old. You can use this activity to celebrate any Chinese Zodiac Animal.
If you want to know which Chinese Zodiac Animal falls on a certain year, check this article from Wikipedia.
I also like this video from DreamEnglish.Com that teaches children about Chinese Zodiac Signs:
So, let’s make the card! It has 2 sides: 1 side is an ornament made by weaving method; another side has a Chinese character for Sheep:
The picture is the courtesy of Han Trainer Pro
Materials needed:

1

Construction paper – 2 pieces of different sizes (I used a quarter of A3 paper for the card and 1/8 of A3 paper for the ornament)
Stripes made of softer paper (I had a kind of crepe paper, but slightly thicker, which I cut into 5 stripes for the ornament of one color; and stripes that will be used to make the character representing the world “sheep” or “goat”)
Scissors
Glue
Process:
1. Fold the smaller piece in half, then fold the top where the opening is a bit. Cut 5-6 times until that fold (so the cuts remain within the paper but you don’t cut off the pieces).
2. Open the paper and take the stripes you made for weaving and start weaving. I taught the children words “over” and “under” in order to introduce the weaving technique. You should get this result:

2

3. Now, use some glue and stick the pattern in the middle of the bigger piece of construction paper, like this:

3

4

4. Let’s turn the bigger piece around and create the character by sticking the pieces you made for it onto the surface. It will look somewhat like this:

5

Note: younger children will need a lot of help with both weaving and character making!
5. You can give the card to your friends, family members or teachers. You can also add a string and hang the card up!
We are looking forward to Chinese New Year as my husband and my daughter get 2 weeks off for it!
**************
Please visit the landing page over at Pickle Pie to learn more about this blog hop!
cny
Check the list of participating blogs below:
Chinese New Year Fortune God Mask from Witty Hoots
Chinese Lantern Sun Catchers from The Gingerbread House
TP Roll Chinese Lanterns from In the Playroom
Thumbprint Chinese Zodiac Craft for Kids from Fun Handprint Art
Cheese Chinese Lanterns from Danya Banya
Wool Painted Fans from Crafts on Sea
Sheep Stick Puppets from Best Toys 4 Toddlers
Felt Shape Sheep from Mama Smiles
Sheep Letter Recognition from Something 2 Offer
Chinese (non firework) Firecrackers from Peakle Pie
Chinese New Year Card from Creative World of Varya
Chinese Dragon Puppets from Messy Little Monster
Paper Plate Chinese Dragon from Kiddy Charts
Dragon Painting for Preschoolers from Learning and Exploring Through Play
Bubble Wrap Sheep Craft from Multicraftingmummy
Chinese Dragon Dance from Study at Home Mamma
Chinese Zodiac Animals in Lego from Planet Smarty Pants

  Link your activities and craft for Chinese New year below: