Celebrate the Year of the Rabbit!
Have you and your students already forgotten your New Year resolutions? Lost the spirit of anticipation that the New Year brings? This week, Education World brings you another chance for a new beginning. It's time to… Celebrate the Year of the Rabbit! Included: Web sites and classroom activities!
According to the Chinese lunar calendar, the Year of the Hare begins on February 16. Chinese tradition says that people born under the sign of the Rabbit possess intelligence, wisdom, and understanding. The Web sites in this week's story will help you introduce your students to the legends, superstitions, and traditions surrounding the 15-day New Year celebration -- enhancing their understanding of other cultures and ancient beliefs.
GUO NIAN
Begin your exploration of the New Year at Chinese New Year by Haiwang Yuan. Though it lacks colorful graphics or lists of links, this site provides a basic, clearly written, insider's introduction to New Year celebrations and superstitions. Sections include:
- The Origin of Chinese New Year recounts a legend central to the New Year rituals and traditions, and discusses the possible origin of the term Guo Nian -- Celebrate the New Year.
- Traditions of Chinese New Year describes some of the highlights of a traditional New Year's celebration. For example, many Chinese paint their doors and windowpanes red and decorate doors and windows with paper-cuts and couplets to celebrate the holiday.
- When Is the Chinese New Year? explains the Chinese lunar calendar's relationship to the Gregorian calendar, the lunar-solar calendar, and a calendar of 24 solar terms related to farming. The last is perhaps the most fascinating, with such functionally descriptive names as "Waking of Insects," "Grain Rain," and "White Dew." Before they explore the site, read your students the entire list and ask them to guess when each period occurs.
After the brief orientation at Haiwang Yuan's site, you can delve deeper into some of the more fascinating aspects of the lunar New Year celebrations at Celebrate Chinese New Year, on the Inside China Web site. This site provides a more comprehensive look at the traditional New Year activities and explains the folklore and superstitions behind them. Sections include Chinese Astrology and the Lunar Calendar -- explaining the five cycles of 12 animal years that make up one complete calendar cycle of 60 years; and Year of the Tiger -- describing the symbolism of 1998's animal. Additional sections describes the specific meaning of various New Year traditions (e.g., Things Red, Firecrackers, Sweet Cakes and Rice Jars, Visitors and Staying Up Late, Paying Respects, Peach Wood Charms and Evil Spirits, Public Holidays, and Lantern Festival). Many sections of this site include fascinating retellings of the legends from which the traditions arose.
After reading about the Year of the Tiger, students might be interested in learning about the symbolism of the other animals in the Zodiac. This colorfully illustrated astrology site briefly describes the characteristics of each sign and lists some famous people born under each sign.
For information on more of the traditional beliefs that influence Chinese New Year celebrations, visit Chinese New Year, from the University of Victoria (British Columbia) Faculty of Education. Though it doesn't include the ancient legends, this site does provide easy-to-read information about the significance of many holiday traditions. Sections include:
- The 15-Day Celebration of Chinese New Year provides explanations of the significance of each day of the New Year celebration and talks about some special ways in which each day is celebrated. For example, children may be interested to note that on the second day, known as the birthday of all dogs, the Chinese are extra kind to dogs and feed them well.
- Traditional New Year Foods discusses foods traditionally eaten during the New Year celebrations and explains the symbolism of many of those foods. Children will be fascinated to discover that chickens are traditionally served with heads and feet still attached -- to signify completeness. Noodles are uncut to represent a long life.
- Chinese New Year Decorations explains the significance of the fruit, flowers, and candy often used to decorate Chinese homes during the holiday period. Bowls of oranges and tangerines, for example, symbolize a year of abundance and happiness.
- Taboos and Superstitions of Chinese New Year discusses a number of ancient superstitions and explains how they influence modern celebrations. You'll learn why houses aren't cleaned and children aren't reprimanded on the first day of the Chinese New Year.
ACTIVITIES TO ACCOMPANY LEARNING!
Once students understand how and why the Chinese New Year is celebrated, they might want to become personally involved in the celebrations by engaging in classroom activities related to the event. With older students, you might begin by using the Golden Legacy Curriculum sample lesson plan on the lunar calendar. The site provides background information on the Chinese lunar calendar, a list of the lunar animals and their traditional characteristics, and a brief glossary. Students complete worksheets on the reliability of horoscope predictions and create and play the Fortune Stick game.
Younger students will enjoy the activities at Chinese New Year Dragon Costume. Here, they can create a dragon mask and then wear it to play Chase the Dragon's Tail, a traditional Chinese children's game.
You might also invite students of all ages to visit Chinese New Year, from Scotland Online. This site provides a brief description of New Year celebrations and includes several quick activities your students will learn from and enjoy. Here, they can welcome the New Year by creating a New Year's email greeting, crack open a "Virtual Fortune Cookie," study the Chinese calendar and discover their sign, or send Chinese New Year wishes as electronic greeting cards.
Finally, your students might enjoy a sneak preview of the Year of the Hare. The 1999 United States Postal Service stamp commemorating this year's New Year celebration is the seventh in the Lunar New Year series. The first stamp, commemorating the Year of the Rooster, was issued in 1992 and the series now includes the Dog, Boar (Pig), Rat, Ox, and Tiger. You might encourage students to design next year's stamp commemorating the Year of the Dragon.
MORE CHINESE NEW YEAR INTERNET RESOURCES
Article by Linda Starr
Education World®
Copyright © 1999 Education World
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02/08/1999
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