My First Chinese New Year

                                 

 

 Katz, Karen. (2004). My First Chinese New Year. New York: Henry Holt and Company

ISBN: 0 – 8050-7076-1 

 This holiday story book is about a young girl’s experience in preparation for the coming Chinese New Year and the fun she has on the day of the festival. During the days before the New Year, there are different activities taking place at home with her family, each day having a distinct meaning and a purpose. This is followed by the much awaited parade where they get to see lion dancers, and school children playing drums and cymbals. At the end, the highlight of the parade, a brightly colored dragon puppet arrives.  Everyone cheers and hugs, wishing each other “Gung Hay Fat Choy,” best wishes for New Year, in Chinese.

The book introduces the Chinese New Year in a colorful and lively manner, which would make it very appealing to preschoolers. The details of the traditions are explained in short and simple sentences for young listeners to understand. The artist has used collage and mixed media to create the illustrations, making each page bright, bold, and vibrant in order to capture the interest of young children.

A very large and colorful puppet dragon would be placed for children’s attention. Most of the children may think it to be a dinosaur, when asked. A Chinese doll would be shown next. Along with the doll, the statement, “Here is a dragon and a Chinese girl,” and the question, “Can anyone help me guess what kind of a story this is?” would be posed. After a few responses, reveal just two of the festival items: the bright red envelop, and a miniature broom. This will interest them further and keep them wondering what the book is about. Then by reading the first two lines of the story with an exuberant voice, reveal the theme of the book “HOORAY! Hooray! Soon it will be Chinese New Year.”  The children will be both excited and interested now to have the story read to them.   

3 Ways of Presenting the Story

Cookie Sheet:  The story can be presented on two sides of the cookie sheet. Using acrylic craft paint, the background of the indoor scene can be painted on one side; and the parade, on the other. The girl and her family, the festive items, the colored red paper, the plum blossom plant, the broom, the bowl of tangerines and oranges, the table filled with the feast, the red envelopes, the lion dancer, and the dragon can be traced off of the book and onto strong cardboard. Peel off colored paper (available @ Urban Source) can be cut to shape and stuck on the front side of the pieces and a small magnet glued on the back. Detailed features on the pieces can be filled in using felt pen. Using a stronger magnet glued on a stick, the pieces can be moved along the tray, while gliding from the back. As the story is narrated, the children will be fascinated to see the three dimensional pieces move around the painted backdrop. At every introduction of a festival activity, the story can be paused for the children to wonder about the significance of each item in the New Year’s celebration. This would encourage creative thinking in children and build their knowledge of how the Chinese celebrate their New Year.    

Felt Board:  Illustrations from the book are easy to design and construct into felt board pieces. The colorful felt pieces of the girl and her family, the festival items, along with the lion, and the dragon puppets, will make the story very attractive and hold children’s attention. It is important to keep all the pieces aside in sequence behind the board when narrating the story. As each item of the festival item is placed on the felt board, pause and wonder about the significance of the item with the children. “Oh! I wonder why this is used.”

Narration:  The book has very colorful illustrations captivating children’s interest, while at the same time, influencing their imagination with what they see. As the story is read, the children can use the pictures shown, to determine the details of the events, how the girl is affected, and why each item and activity is important. After reading the story, have a few children recall some of the festival activities and items from the story. Then ask them if they can recall some of the reasons for the items and activities. 

3 possible Extensions

Exploration:  Have the children share information about their cultures. Encourage them to bring pictures or items from home, exhibiting their cultural festival or celebration. The library has many books for children on the cultures of the world. Pictures from these books can be photocopied and all the gathered information can be displayed and discussed showing differences and similarities. From this cultural exploration the children can begin to learn about different countries and how far they are from their individual family’s home town on the world map or globe.                                                                                                                       

Arts and Crafts:  Make a Papier-mâché dragon using wire-mesh frame for the dragon’s large head. Paint and decorate it with brightly colored paint and glitter.  Attach long yards of colorful fabric, large enough to allow children to go under and act out the character of the festival dragon safely.  This activity will be fun, energizing, and thrilling for the children. The children can also make lanterns, which are a part of the festival, and can be taken home.

Show and Tell Game:  This fun activity involves the children being asked to match an object with the corresponding festival activity from the story book. For all the children to take an active part and have a sense of belonging, their cultural festivities may also be included in the activity. This will widen children’s knowledge about the diversity of cultures surrounding them.