Make a Monkey Chain for Lunar New Year!

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As part of my Lunar New Year Story Time  for my newsletter subscribers (I'm starting to shift most of my stuff there, so please sign up!), I suggested that readers make a monkey chain decoration!  Isn't it super cute? This is how you do it:

You need:

-a 4.25 x 11 sheet of paper (a normal 8.5 x 11 piece of paper cut in half the long way). 

-a ruler

-a pencil

-scissors

-this monkey template, printed out, preferably on cardstock

-maybe some tape

Directions:

1. Measure 2.2 inches from one side of the paper and mark:

nice straight line, don't worry if it's not exactly 2.2 inches, it all gets fudged when you fold

2. Fold on your marking and then use that width to accordion fold the rest of your paper. You should be able to make 4 folds (which will equal five monkeys after cutting).

accordion fold is like making a paper fan

3. cut out the template and trace the monkey onto the folded paper.  It's pretty small, so you might want to use a small piece of tape to help hold the template down while you trace. Make sure the arms of the monkey go right to the edge, if not off the edge of your paper.

a little bit of tape helps it from moving around, but just tack it on gently as you want to take the template off!

it should be traced like this!

 4. Cut out the monkey from you folded paper, making sure you cut all five layers. Do NOT cut along the folds where the monkeys arms touch the edges of the paper (that is where the chain connects!)

When finished, unfold and...Ta-Dah!

Five monkeys to go with the Five Monkeys Rhyme I made Lunar New Year!

*Want to make this a craft with kids?  Consider:

-Enlarging the paper and the template proportionally so that it's easier for them to cut.
-If the kids are young, pre-measure the folds for them
-If the kids are very young, make the chains for them and let them color them red (to go with the rhyme)

See how you can use this monkey chain for a Monkey New Year Story Time in my newsletter! (and please sign up for future editions).

Goodbye, Year of the Dragon!

Tomorrow is Chinese New Year, the start of the Year of the Snake and the end of the Year of the Dragon!

It's been a lovely year, I can't complain. Sure, there were some disappointments, but they were pretty minor compared to the wonderful gift I've received.  So I wanted to say a fond farewell to the Dragon by sharing this little activity. This is actually a bit of a sneak peak to the Children's Book Week Bookmark I am creating, but it's also just a fun, simple way to celebrate the New Year!

Draw your dragon on a red sheet of paper and hang it for good luck!

bunny lantern craft

No Moon Festival is complete without the soft glow of a lantern. Children often parade their lanterns of different shapes and colors. Nowadays lanterns can range from modern cartoon characters to rocket ships, but usually they are round (like the moon) or in the shapes of rabbits (because of the Jade Rabbit that lives on the moon).

Which is why I decided to create a bunny lantern craft! This bunny lantern is easy, fun and (I think!) extremely cute:

When I was a child in school we had a paper lantern craft, but I was never quite satisfied with it because those lanterns could never be lit. So when I created this bunny lantern, I made sure it could really GLOW:


Isn't that fun? But before it glows, it has to be made. To make this bunny lantern you will need:


1. a sheet of tracing paper at 8.5 x 24 inches (my sheet is 19 x 24, I cut it to the right size)
2. a ruler
3. a pencil
4. a pair of scissors
5. scotch tape (invisible/not shiny is better)
6. markers, colors of your choice (mine are peach, black, brown, light blue)
7. 4 inch lightstick necklace, any color (mine is yellow)
8. cord (should come with your light stick necklace)
9. a chopstick
10. bunny template, download and print HERE (updated 9/7/2022)




STEP 1. Fold your tracing paper in half, to make an 8.5 x 12 inch rectangle:

STEP 2. Using the ruler, measure and make a line .75 inches from the edge of the long (12 inch) side. Fold on the line:

STEP 3. Repeat on other long side:

STEP 4. Tape both folds down. Make sure you tape down the entire length:

STEP 5. All sides of your paper except one should be closed (like an envelope). Fit the bunny template under you paper, making sure the opening is at the top. Trace the thick black lines:

STEP 6. Cut out your markings, as indicated by the template:

STEP 7: Draw your bunny face. My bunny face uses 2 simple black ovals for the eyes, a brown circle for the nose, blue whiskers and a peach color in the ears. But you can make your face anyway you wish!

STEP 8. Poke a hole through the top of your bunny's head (both layers of paper). You can use a small hole punch if you have one. I did not, so I just used my pencil:
STEP 9. String your lightstick inside the bunny using the cord. Tie it loosely:

STEP 10: Tie the other end of the cord to a chopstick. Tie this tightly, perhaps wrapping around the chopstick a couple of times to keep it secure:

And your bunny lantern is complete:

Now all you have to do is wait until nightfall, activate the lightstick according to the lightstick's instructions (you may have to untie & retie the cord) and let your lantern GLOW:
Make one for all the kids on your street and have a Moon Festival lantern parade!


In honor of my new book Thanking the Moon: Celebrating the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival (now available!!) I'm running a week-long series of posts on the Moon Festival. Don't forget you can celebrate the book & the festival with me this Sunday in NYC at the MOCA's Mid-Autumn Family Festival!

attempting to answer New Year questions

So, even though I have written 3 Lunar New Year themed books (BRINGING IN THE NEW YEAR, THE YEAR OF THE DOG, and THE YEAR OF THE RAT), I don't really consider myself an expert. But I do know some things! So with my limited knowledge, I thought I would try to answer some of the more frequently asked questions there are about the Lunar New Year.

Q. Why is Lunar New Year a different date every year?

A. The Lunar New Year is celebrated on the first day of, well, the lunar year. That means it follows the lunar calendar which is based on the phases of the moon vs the solar calendar--the one we use regularly.

Q.  What should we eat for Lunar New Year?

A. No matter what you eat, you should eat a lot!  If you remember in my books THE YEAR OF THE DOG, and THE YEAR OF THE RAT, there was always a lot of food! That is because if you are full and satisfied on Lunar New Year, that means you will be satisfied for the whole year. In fact, you should be dinner leftovers as well--that means you'll have more than enough for the New Year!

There are many different symbolic food that one can eat for the New Year. Most people serve a whole fish (with the head and the tail on) because the word for fish is a homonym for the word abundance--and to obtain ALL your abundance for the year, you must serve ALL the fish--so don't cut the head or tail off.

But my favorite dish for New Year's was always the fried dumplings called jiao zi. In, THE YEAR OF THE DOG, my mother says, "If you eat these, you'll be rich!" That is because they symbolize gold coins. For a Jiao Zi recipe try this one.

Q. This is the Year of the Tiger! What does that mean?

In my book, THE YEAR OF THE RAT, there is the story of the 12 animals of the Chinese Zodiac, which tells of the great race of the animals to win the the honor of a year named after them. The winning animals had their own characteristics as you can tell by how they they competed.

The Tiger won his place by sheer strength, courage and nerve. That is why they say people who are born in the Year of the Tiger are risk-takers and brave. So, this year, the Year of the Tiger, is the year where we all have to be strong, brave and ready to take risks. It might be a bit unpredictable and surprising--but hopefully all in lucky way

Chinese Firecracker Craft

This Chinese Firecracker Craft is safe and fire-free!

Supplies:
-bubble wrap
-toilet paper roll
-pipecleaner
-red and yellow (or gold paint) & paintbrushes
-tape/stapler
-scissors

1. Staple (or tape) the ends of the pipe cleaner to the inside of the roll. Then twist the pipe cleaner together to make it look more like a fuse:

2.Cut a 2x3 inch rectangle of bubble wrap, roll it and put it into the tube. Use a little tape on the top and bottom so it doesn't move around.

3. Paint your tube red. With the yellow paint, paint decorations on the firecracker such as the Chinese word FU (you can use this for reference) or a border of your imagination!


4.Now you can set off your firecracker. Put your fingers or thumbs into the tube and pop the bubble wrap! When the bubble wrap is popped, it sounds like fireworks are going off! (This works best when there is a whole classroom of kids doing this at once!) Happy Lunar New Year!

Chinese New Year Banner Craft

The simplest of crafts to start your year lucky!

Supplies:

1. red square of paper, preferably about 8x8 (8 is a lucky number!) but can be any size
2. gold paint
3. paintbrush

1. Paint a simple single line border about a half inch from the edge of you paper with the gold paint.


2. Turn your paper so it makes a diamond shape, not a square. Copying the character found HERE, paint the Chinese word for luck (FU) in the center.



3. Before New Year's Eve tape your banner right side up on your door to welcome in luck!


After New Year's Eve, turn your banner upside down:

because in Chinese the "reversed fu" is homophonic with "fu dao le" pronounced as "fu comes." The upside down fu becomes a pun that means "good fortune has arrived!"

e-card

Random House just made an e-card with the art from Bringing in the New Year! It is very neat--with an animated dragon and exploding fireworks.
Did you forget to send out Chinese New Year greetings? Because it's perfect for those late wishes, if I do say so myself.