How to Celebrate Lunar New Year at School – Fun, Inclusive Ideas
Over the past few years, I’ve had the honor of helping kids learn how to celebrate Lunar New Year at school. So many teachers have adapted our Lunar New Year Lesson Plan with their preschool and elementary school students, and I’m excited to share it with you! Think of the ideas as a menu for books, crafts, activities, and goody bags. Then, decide how to celebrate Lunar New Year at your school with kids.
How to celebrate Lunar New Year at school with kids
Lunar New Year is the most important holiday in Asian countries, including China, Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, and Vietnam.
Even as people relocate and celebrate worldwide, many beautiful traditions have persisted through centuries.
As a mom of Chinese Korean American kids in a small town, sharing about Chinese Spring Festival 春节/春節 and Korean Seollal 설날 with our local schools has become an annual tradition.
But growing up, I don’t remember celebrating Lunar New Year at home, let alone school.
So I’m grateful that teachers in this generation are learning how to celebrate Lunar New Year with kids at school.
Although my family is not Vietnamese, I feel responsible for researching and including Vietnamese Tết traditions. Non-Chinese traditions are not as well known, and people often feel left out of the Lunar New Year lesson plan.
In our children’s schools, I’ve been the first to teach how to celebrate Lunar New Year in different cultures.
With all that said, if you’re a busy parent not used to going to school, I recommend starting with what you’re most comfortable with. Keep it simple, and see if you can collaborate with another parent.
If you’re the only heritage parent, you might feel pressured to represent and “get it all right.” So, that’s why I created this comprehensive Lunar New Year Lesson Plan. From here, you can simplify as needed or go all out!
I’ve categorized the ideas into Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese cultures in this Lunar New Year Lesson Plan.
The first 4 steps should be doable for most families and schools.
I’ve also included bonus Lunar New Year celebration activities for kids and students.
You might notice that Chinese and Vietnamese Lunar New Year traditions have more similarities than Korean traditions. Please also note that “Chinese” in this article refers to Chinese culture rather than China as a nationality.
I hope the ideas inspire you to celebrate Lunar New Year at your school and home!
Step 1: Visit Asia on a world globe or map
Every kid I’ve met can’t resist the urge to spin the globe and feel the bumpy mountains and smooth ocean.
When I teach kids how to celebrate the Lunar New Year, it’s fun to start with a “visit” to different Asian countries!
I also like to start the conversation by asking the kids about their backgrounds.
- Have any of you heard of Lunar New Year?
- Do any of you celebrate Lunar New Year at home?
- Have you traveled to any of the countries on the map?
Knowing if any children have celebrated Lunar New Year at school or home is helpful. Questions invite children to get curious, too.
As I introduce the various countries that celebrate Lunar New Year, I ask the students to think about Christmas for comparison. I encourage them to brainstorm how traditions might be similar or different among friends and neighbors. I also remind kids that many people celebrate other holidays like Hanukkah instead, even if they live in the same area.
Explore this: Favorite World Globes For Kids Of All Ages (Bilingual)
Step 2: Read Lunar New Year Books
Stories are an inviting way to teach kids how to celebrate Lunar New Year traditions at school!
Before reading a book, I tell the kids we are seeing one person’s story. The more stories we read, the more we can learn about history and culture.
In recent years, I have also brought props for the kids to look at and touch while discussing something related to a book.
For example, I brought our Chinese Lunar New Year crafts like lanterns, firecrackers, and red envelopes; Korean Seollal crafts like the fan, drum, and silk pouches; plus printable Vietnamese crafts from my Lunar New Year Activity Kit.
Lunar New Year picture books
For younger classrooms, I recommend starting with one book from each culture to share with the school. It’s normal for kids to be wiggly; most can probably sit through 1 short story max. Additional books can be read on other days.
- Chinese / Taiwanese Spring Festival 春节/春節:
- 欢乐中国年 / 歡樂過新年 Happy Chinese New Year is a stunning pop-up book that wows all children with its 3D overview of major Chinese traditions!
- A Sweet New Year for Ren by Michelle Sterling is a story about food, connection, and belonging in a Filipino Chinese American family.
- Nian Monster by Andrea Wang features a creative spin on the traditional Nian Monster myth. A little Shanghainese girl scares off the Nian Monster with traditional decorations and food.
- The Great Race by Ling and Eric Lee is a fun bilingual rendition of the Chinese zodiac folktale. Whether or not you are fluent in Chinese, this book is a great introduction to both languages and has Pinyin phonetic support.
- Check out more of the best Chinese New Year books in English and Chinese here.
- Korean Seollal 설날:
- Tomorrow is New Year’s Day by Aram Kim is a relatable story about a Korean American family who heads to school to share about Lunar New Year celebrations. The problem is that the little brother can’t stand his itchy hanbok and doesn’t want to wear it!
- All Year for One Day by Tiff Lee takes us through a family’s day of preparing special meals like rice oval soup, wearing hanboks, and bowing with simple lines rhyme.
- Korean Celebrations by Tina Cho is a more comprehensive book about various Korean festivals, including the Lunar New Year. This is a great reference book to keep in the classroom!
- Check out more amazing Korean New Year books in English and Korean here.
- Vietnamese Tết:
- Colors of Tet / Màu của Tết by Tiny Wrist is a bilingual English-Vietnamese board book about noticing the beautiful colors of the decorated holiday.
- Tết Together by Alice Duong Trinh introduces readers to special Vietnamese Tết traditions, the importance of connecting with family, and having fun with dazzling decorations and decadent meals.
- This is Tết: Rhyming story about Lunar New Year in Vietnam by Tam Bui was published in Vietnamese and translated into English. Inspired by the author’s memories in Cổ Bản Village, the book takes readers on a tour through a child’s eyes.
Lunar New Year chapter books and novels
For students in elementary school, celebrate the Lunar New Year by making cultural chapter books available and reading a passage out loud.
- Chinese New Year:
- Celebrating Chinese New Year: History, Traditions, and Activities – A Holiday Book for Kids by Eugenia Chu is excellent for students to learn about decorations, legends, foods, and festivities.
- The Year of the Dog (A Pacy Lin Novel) by Grace Lin is a series of middle-grade books based on the author’s childhood. Although the story is not specifically an overview of the Lunar New Year, it shows the real-life struggle of living between cultures and discovering one’s identity.
- Korean New Year:
- Mindy Kim and the Lunar New Year Parade by Lyla Lee is a chapter book about an 8-year-old Korean-American girl who recently moved to a new state with her dad after her mom passed away. She learns to make new traditions for Lunar New Year with her dad and new friends.
Step 3: Have fun with Lunar New Year activities
These activities are a popular part of celebrating the Lunar New Year at school!
Simple Lunar New Year crafts
A lantern craft would be my top recommendation if you can only do one Lunar New Year activity with your class!
Paper lanterns are the best activity for all ages. Our printable lantern template makes it more doable.
All you need is colored paper, scissors, and tape!
Plus, lanterns are fun Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese decorations.
Inclusive Lunar New Year Activity Kit
Our Lunar New Year Ebook and Activity Kit is convenient for elementary school kids to learn about geography, history, and culture.
This Lunar New Year activity book includes China, Taiwan, South Korea, Vietnam, Singapore, and Malaysia! While many traditions overlap, each culture has unique customs.
This activity kit checks all the boxes in a Lunar New Year lesson plan: calendar science, history, geography, social studies, food culture, and more.
Colorful photographs bring the exciting facts to life. The included printable activities are a fun introduction to various cultures.
More Lunar New Year activities and crafts for kids
If you have time in your lesson plan, check out more Lunar New Year activities for kids to enjoy at school.
Step 4: Prepare Lunar New Year goody bags
Kids love gifts, and mine are no exception! When you celebrate Lunar New Year at school, having something the children can take home and show their parents is nice.
Goody bags are always a hit at any party, from the first peek inside to dumping everything out.
Plus, a Lunar New Year goody bag is a fun way for kids to show parents what they learned at school.
Since the Lunar New Year shares a season with Valentine’s Day, red paper bags should be easy to get this time of year, such as these:
Korean drawstring pouches are so beautiful to share with smaller classes or groups. My kids love getting Korean pouches from their grandparents, but they might be too costly for a large class.
What to put inside a Lunar New Year goody bag
This is the best part of the Lunar New Year lesson plan! Here are some fun treats to consider. *I’ve put an asterisk next to items we’ve put in our goody bags.
- Non-food ideas
- Red envelopes:
- Gold star stickers*, gem / rhinestone stickers*
- Temporary tattoos
- Cute stationary related to the zodiac animal of the year
- Money, especially crisp $2 or $1 bills, inside red envelopes in Chinese/Vietnamese culture or regular white envelopes in Korean culture. Although coins are generally avoided for traditional gifts, they can be fun for kids at school to receive if dollar bills are too costly.
- Chinese coins
- Food ideas (check for allergies/restrictions)
- Clementines*
- Baby apples
- Gold chocolate coins (milk chocolate) OR gold chocolate coins (vegan/top 9 allergy-free)*
- Fruit snacks
- Asian candy
- Top 9 allergy-free snacks (e.g., Made Good, No Whey! EnjoyLife, YumEarth). For the critics who are concerned that these foods are not Asian, safety and inclusion for the kids in the class are more important than being a stickler for ancient traditions.
Inside the goody bags, I also put our Lunar New Year Activity Kit (printed half-size to save paper) so the kids can look at it with the teacher or take it home to show their parents.
What if I don’t have much time/budget?
No worries! Some years, we have given kids red envelopes with chocolate coins – nothing more. This was exciting enough! And my kids love getting new Korean pouches from their grandparents.
Brush off the generational guilt that we must overextend ourselves for everything!
More ways to celebrate Lunar New Year at school
Decorations, outfits, songs, and dances can make the holiday memorable!
Lunar New Year decorations for school
Decorations can get kids excited about celebrating Lunar New Year at school! Here are affordable decorations to consider:
- Colorful lanterns can transform a boring lesson into a festive party. If you’re looking to go all out with a Chinese New Year theme, Amazon has party sets like this that can be reused year after year.
- Beautiful flowers like orchids and chrysanthemums are essential Vietnamese decorations.
- Our printable Chinese red banners and firecracker crafts are fun decorations for a classroom, too!
Note: Korean traditions are minimalist compared to the Chinese and Vietnamese Lunar New Year cultures. Koreans don’t have to worry about decorating in any particular way, and they aren’t particularly superstitious.
Moreover, virtually all Lunar New Year decorations feature “lucky” red colors and Chinese characters. And Vietnam language has a different writing script than Chinese.
Parents and teachers should explain cultural differences when kids celebrate Lunar New Year at school.
Lunar New Year songs and videos
If your class has bilingual parents, see if they would like to teach a Lunar New Year song as part of the lesson plan! The class can also watch one Lunar New Year music video.
- For Chinese Spring Festival 春节/春節, 恭喜恭喜 is a popular song to sing during this time of year. Check out more videos about Chinese New Year here.
- For Korean Seollal 설날, the Woori Show shares this lovely folk song with lyrics. Check out more videos about Korean New Year here.
- For Vietnamese Tết, Tiny Wrist has a nice video of Tết Tết Tết đến rồi.
Traditional clothing for the Lunar New Year
Red qipaos and tang suits have been worn for centuries in Chinese culture. Hanboks have been the standard in Korean culture. In Vietnamese culture, ao dài are worn by men and women.
Some kids enjoy dressing up and celebrating in traditional cultural clothing, while others don’t. But this can be a fun option to offer the students at school!
While my daughter has pretty qipao and hanbok dresses, I do not feel comfortable wearing them. I didn’t even realize I wore ripped jeans to a school presentation this year until I saw a photo afterward.
While I’m sure there will be some tsk-tsking at this, I am not worried because the kids had a great time and learned a lot.
Special Lunar New Year snacks and treats for school
Before you celebrate Lunar New Year at school, check the policy about food in the classroom.
As a mom of a child with multiple life-threatening allergies, snacks and treats can be tricky to navigate.
However, if the class has no food restrictions, dumplings are a staple in Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese cultures!
Clementines are a simple, healthy, and popular snack often included in school Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations.
And I have to reiterate the top 9 allergy-free gold chocolate coins!
Lunar New Year dancing with lions, dragons, and fans!
Want to impress the kids? The most fun way to celebrate Lunar New Year is to take the school to see:
- A lion dance or dragon dance (popular in Chinese and Vietnamese culture)
- A fan dance (popular in Korean culture).
Check your local college and city’s performance arts center! It’s a beautiful way to support local artists while bringing education and culture to the classroom.
This would be a fantastic field trip, or invite the performers to the school.
What are your favorite ways to celebrate Lunar New Year at school?
Which Lunar New Year traditions have you enjoyed celebrating at school? What activities have been the most exciting? Please share in the comments below. We’d love to learn how you celebrate Lunar New Year with kids.
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Thank you! As a millennial it is hard with the generational pressure of giving red envelopes to my many nieces and nephews. That and everything else mentioned in this article was so helpful!
Thank you for sharing your experience! I’m so glad to hear the article was helpful. Happy New Year, Cindy!
Wow, absolutely amazing article thank you so much! I came for book recommendations but was truly inspired by this article. Now I want to make fire crackers and decorate too. This article was just in time before we visit China Town in San Francisco for their Chinese new year parade!
Hi Ashley! I’m so happy to hear the article was helpful. I hope you had a wonderful time at the Chinatown parade!
Thank you very much for compiling all the info and ideas about Lunar New Year celebrations! It’s fascinating to see different races celebrate this special holiday in similar and different ways ❤️
So happy to hear that it was helpful! Thanks so much for taking the time to read and comment. Blessed New Year, Lilian!
Thank you so much for this post! It’s so detailed and thoughtful and I love that you’ve included multiple cultures that celebrate Lunar New Year. Happy LNY to you and your family 🙂
Hi Becca! Grateful to hear the article was helpful. Thanks for taking the time to write! Happy LNY to you and yours as well!