Celebrate the Lunar New Year

This month we celebrate the start to the Lunar New Year and welcome the Year of the Dragon. The dragon is a sign of good luck, long life, and wisdom.

Lunar New Year (sometimes called Chinese New Year) is celebrated around the world and can be an exciting opportunity to introduce your little ones to new cultural experiences.

Children’s health and wellbeing is supported by fun, interactive learning experiences and our little ones benefit from rich opportunities to learn and explore with the important adults in their lives.

What better way to start this exploration than by attending a Chinese New Year celebration.

Joining cultural celebrations in your community can a great way to encourage playful exploration of cultural traditions and beliefs.

Watch the Chinese dances with your children and use prompting questions. Can you see the dragon dancing? Talk about what the dragon means and point out the sharp teeth, the length of the swishing tail, the patterns, and movements. Watch the dancers move the dragon up and down and side to side. Talk about directions and shapes, high and low.

Use discussions of celebrations to encourage your children to hear and understand new words and explore new areas of interest. Encourage your children to continue learning about the countries whose celebrations you experience together including, food, music, dance and stories.

To practice some of these ideas and introduce your little ones to rich cultural experiences, visit your local library for resources and celebration details, or visit the State Library on Sunday 25 at 10.00 am for a traditional lion dance performed by Red Dragon Martial Arts and followed by a Community Story Time.

For more information how you can support your child’s health and wellbeing through reading and imaginative play attend a First 5 Forever session at your local library and chat with the First 5 Forever staff. And remember, you’re never too young to be a member of your local library – you can join from birth and borrow any number of fantastic books about Lunar New Year to celebrate.

Like what?

Ruby’s Chinese New Year written by Vickie Lee and illustrated by Joey Chou (2023)

The Year of the Dragon, Tales from the Chinese Zodiac by Olive Chin and illustrated by Jennifer Wood (2024)