Lunar New Year, also known as Chinese New Year, Seollal, Tết, or the Spring Festival, is a holiday celebrated in many east Asian countries, as well as in the United States. According to the lunar calendar, a year is the amount of time it takes the moon to go around the Earth 12 times. The Lantern Festival is the last day of celebrations.
Lanterns are a way to make wishes for good luck, happiness, and fortune in the coming year. You can also write a riddle on your lantern to see who will guess the right answer.
Materials:
- 1 sheet of red paper
- 1 sheet of yellow paper
- 1 strip of red paper
- Scissors
- Glue, tape, or stapler
Directions:
- Take your red paper and fold it in half along the long side.
- Cut from the fold to about one-half inch from the edge of the paper.
- Keep cutting along the fold to make strips. Remember to LEAVE ½ INCH AT THE EDGE OF THE PAPER. This way, your paper will still be attached on the top and bottom.
- Open up the paper and bring the ends together to make a circle with the top and bottom. The middle will fold out into a lantern shape. You can glue, staple, or tape the edges. Double sided tape is easiest if using tape.
- Use the strip of paper to make the handle. Attach the handle with tape, glue, or staples.
- If you would like, you can put a liner inside your lantern. Form the yellow paper into a tube, and then tape the red lantern over the top of it. It looks a little like there is a light glowing inside.
- Since you want the outside part to bow out a little, you’ll tape the bottom a little higher on the tube. You can cut off the bottom of the tube if you want your lantern to sit on a surface. Or, you can cut it into fringes.
To learn more about Lunar New Year, check out one of these books from the library: Celebrate the Lunar and Chinese New Year
