Fun Korean Lunar New Year Crafts and Activities for Kids!

I’m so excited to share our first Korean Lunar New Year crafts with you! Our children are half-Korean and acquiring the language from our part-time nanny.

Since my kids are also half-Chinese through me, we’ve done so many Chinese Lunar New Year crafts. However, I hope they can embrace their Korean heritage, despite living far from their Korean paternal grandparents.

Finding Korean-specific crafts online has been challenging for our family, so I’m hoping this post can encourage more families and schools to explore Korean culture!

Here are 2 easy Korean Lunar New Year crafts that our nanny did with our kids! I’ll explain the simple steps along with important Korean vocabulary below.

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Important Korean Lunar New Year vocabulary

For parents who are learning Korean with their children, below are a few important terms related to the Lunar New Year activities in this post!

• 새해 복 많이 받으세요 (Saehae bok mani badeuseyo / Happy New Year)
  • 새해 = New year
  • 복 = Luck
  • 많이 = Many
  • 받으세요 = Received (Honorific way of saying 받다)
• 설날 (Seollal / Lunar New Year)
• 태극 (Taegeuk)
• 부채 (Buchae / Fan)
• 흔들북 (Heundeulbug / Drum) or 소고 (Sogo / Small Drum)

Korean Taegeuk 태극 / 太極 symbol

South Korean’s national flag features a red and blue Taegeuk symbol which represents balance in the universe.

Both of these Korean Lunar New Year crafts feature a tri-colored variation of the Korean Taegeuk symbol.

Red, blue, and yellow represent Earth, heaven, and humanity respectively.

Korean Lunar New Year paper plate pellet drum craft for kids

Korean paper plate drum craft: what you need

1. 2 biodegradable paper plates
2. Pencil
3. Acrylic paint (buy from Michaels or Amazon)
4. Paint brush
5. String (eg, cotton twine)
6. Scissors
7. Tacky or wood glue
8. Wood beads or jingle bells
9. Wood chopstick or tree branch stick

Korean paper plate drum craft: how to make it

1. Draw Taegeuk outline on back of one paper plate (second plate optional)
2. Paint red, blue, and yellow as shown in above photo
3. Inside 2 paper plates:
   1. Glue a stick vertically in center
   2. Glue a piece of string on each side of paper plate
4. Thread beads or jingle bells at end of each string
5. Roll stick to rotate drum back and forth for pellets to hit drum (plate)!

Korean Lunar New Year Craft: Cardboard Fan

Cardboard Korean fan craft: what you need

1. Printable Korean Taegeuk fan template from aerilynbooks.com
   1. Click on “Free downloadable worksheets”
   2. Scroll to the bottom for “Paper Fan Craft”
2. Cardboard (tip: cereal boxes are easier to cut compared to delivery packages!)
3. Scissors
4. Glue
5. Markers or paint
6. Large craft stick (popsicle stick)

Cardboard Korean fan craft: how to make it

1. Print and cut Korean Taeguk fan template
2. Trace fan shape on cardboard
3. Glue fan template on cardboard
4. Color red, yellow, and blue
5. Enjoy fanning and keeping cool! 🙂

Alternative option: If your child is not interested in coloring, you can print out the template on red, yellow, and blue cardstock paper.

Korean Lunar New Year games

Here are fun traditional Korean games that have been recommended by relatives and friends:

• Yut Nori Board Game: You can buy this game on Amazon or download a free printable from Modern Seoul.
• 공기 Korean Jacks Stone Game: Our friend gave us this popular children’s game from Amazon, which can be played any time of the year! This video explains the game in English.

Have you tried these Korean activities for Lunar New Year?

If you try this activity, please let us know in the comments below! What age(s) are your kid(s) and how did it go? We’d love to hear about your learning experience!

On Instagram and Facebook, tag a photo @chalkacademy and use the hashtag #ChalkAcademy so our family can check out the action!

More Korean learning resources for kids

• DIY Alphabet Phonics Boxes, Tactile Letters, and Teaching Tips (Korean Hangul)
• Korean Alphabet Toys: 4 Ways to Teach Kids with Hangul Letters
• Korean Gift Guide for Kids: Cultural, Educational, and Fun Toys!
• 7 Easy Ways to Teach Chinese and Korean with Play Dough (VIDEO)
• More trilingual activities for kids

Korean books, toys, music on Amazon

Click here to see Korean books, music, and Hangul toys on Amazon!

Happy Korean Lunar New Year, friends!