Friday, February 12th, marked the beginning of the Chinese Lunar New Year, China’s biggest holiday, which is celebrated throughout the world. –
2021 is the year of the Ox
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According to Chinese astrology, each year is associated with an animal as well as one of five elements, including gold (metal), wood, water, fire or Earth. The element, combined with the zodiac animal, sets the astrology for the year.
In past years, parents have visited and given wonderful presentations on Chinese New Year. They read stories, talked about Chinese customs and ways of celebrating the New Year, and the importance of the color red, made crafts, and cooked Chinese dumplings with the children. It was a wonderful way to experience this holiday and culture. This year we needed to make adjustments due to social distancing and Covid.
Lower Elementary students enjoyed presentations, stories, and games providing them with a window into the cultural celebrations of Korean and Chinese New Year. Many Lower Elementary parents gave a presentation via Zoom about Chinese New Year, and Mrs. Suh taught the children about Korean New Year traditions.
Lin Yi’s Lantern: A Moon Festival Tale by Brenda Williams and Benjamin Lacombe was shared with the Upper Elementary students to commemorate the start of the Lunar New Year, also known as the Chinese New Year. In the spirit of the red envelope tradition, the students created red envelopes, and instead of money, they wrote well-wishes to loved ones to put inside the envelopes.
