Our Dancing Dragon

It was a great celebration in the hallways of my school.  A Chinese Dancing Dragon made quite a noise!

The Noodle Shop

I loved the felt noodle idea so much!  I put out pieces of felt and let the children cut noodles.  They loved it!  Noodle Shop is open!

Preparing for Chinese New Years

This last week my classroom has been a buzz preparing for Chinese New Years.   Here's a peek into our preparations:

 Each color family designed a Dancing Dragon.

 Colors and designs were recorded.

 We built the head of Dancing Dragon out of cardboard boxes.

 Painted it with acrylic paint.

I am traveling this weekend - later today I will post more photos of the preparations!

Tomorrow we will do our dance!

 The children glued on squares of construction paper.

 The children glued fabric pieces they cut onto the gold fabric they picked for the body!

 I have a nice collection of Chinese outfits. 

So I had a volunteer photograph the children.

I tinted them to look old.  So cute!

Chinese New Year Ideas for the Kindergarten

Next week I start my two week unit on the Chinese New Years (officially on January 23).  I have been planning and thinking about what I want to do this year.  Here are a few ideas I found on the web from fellow bloggers.  Do you have any good ideas?  Let me know!

I love this ideas from Kaboose!  Click here for instructions.

I do a similar project in my China unit -- but this one uses yarn for the branches!  Love that idea!

From: Flixya

I love my red lanterns!  I might use gold around the ends this year.

Click here for instructions!

Me oh my!  I adore this idea - yarn noodles!  This is going to rock my housekeeping this year!  I feel a Chinese Restaurant in my near future!  From Let's Go Fly A Kite

Chinese Blossom Tree

The object of education is to teach us love of beauty.

Plato 

I adore that the classrooms of Reggio Emilia hold aesthetic beauty as an important part of respecting the child and their learning environment.  Waldorf education honors the child with objects made from the highest quality  - as natural as possible.   These things make such a difference in the atmosphere of the classroom.  This is one of those projects that brings such a special mood with it!  This tree is so beautiful not only in the classroom but in the home as well.

My school has been closed because of a blizzard that rumbled across the midwest!  I had planned this as a project this week.  It was clear today that it wasn't going to happen this week so I sent my husband out into the depths of the snow to find a tree branch.  Normally, the children would help me create the blossom tree.  No worries -  when we return to school they will make marbelized hearts to hang on the tree.  This tree is not only great for the Chinese New Year but it transitions nicely into Valentine's.

Before

After

What you will need: heavy gel medium (for the glue), deep pink tissue paper cut into squares, and a tree branch.

Scrunch up the tissue paper to form a blossom.

Dip the blossom into the gel medium.

 

Place blossom on branch. 

Chinese Calligraphy

This is another one of those projects that children of all ages can succeed with!  It is super simple to set up and can be done in a whole group setting.   These Chinese "scrolls" are beautiful to hang.  I have used different sources for the Chinese characters - this time I chose the Chinese numbers 4, 5, and 6.  Before we begin, I tell the children that half the beauty of Chinese calligraphy is the brush strokes. "Do not paint over a brush stroke!  It is beautiful just as it is!"  We look at examples so they understand.

What you will need:  black paint, paint brushes, white construction paper cut in half length-wise, red ribbon for hanging.

Paint a square.  Make a "J" and a backwards "J."

Draw a uppercase I.  Draw a line through the middle and bring it down at a slant. 

This number looks like a person! Draw a "sleeping" line. Draw two slanting lines.  Make a small, single line above the sleeping line. 

Making Painted Plum Blossom Trees

The Chinese Plum Blossom tree is considered to bring good luck and hope.  I have done this project with four year olds with great success.   It helps to tell the children that we are not painting the whole tree - just a section of it.  

What you will need to paint this tree - light blue construction paper, brown paint, paint brush, glue and pink tissue paper cut into 2 x 2 inch squares.

 

 Step One: On the left side, paint a line from top to bottom of the paper.

 Step Two: From the trunk of the tree, make a sweeping line out - a curved line.  Add a smaller sweeping line to it.

 Step Three:  Add a smaller sweeping, curved line going up.  Let dry.

Step Four:  Squeeze a dot of glue wherever you would like to place a blossom.

Step Five:  Take a pink square of tissue and squish it up so that it forms a little blossom.  Place on glue dot.  Let dry.

 

 

How to Draw a Panda Bear

This drawing project looks great using just black and green watercolors.  I just love how unique and individual each child's drawing turns out. 

What you will need:  Sharpies, white cardstock, black and green watercolors (I used a liquid concentrate).

How to draw a simple panda bear:

Draw a medium sized circle at the top of the page. 

Make a "U" like shape from one side of the head to the other side.

Add two arms by drawing long lines that curve into body like the letter "J".

 Add two legs by drawing a line out and make a bump.  Draw down and back to the body.  Add three small circles and a oval for paws on all four feet. 

Draw a belly line - a "U" like shape.

Add a dot for the belly button.  On the face, draw two slanted ovals.

Add eyes in the two slanted ovals.  Draw two ears by making upside down u's.  Add a nose by drawing an oval and a "j" line.  Make a backwards "j."

Add a horizon line and bamboo trees.  Next watercolor the areas that the panda bear is black.  Watercolor the green bamboo.