Craft Ideas:

Make a name tag with your zodiac symbol on it

Make Kites from brown paper bags and attached yarn and pictures the kids

had colored of dragons.

Chinese lanterns - fold paper and cut slits half way up then round it

and glue together.

Bookmarks with your Name in Calligraphy

Practice drawing the Chinese symbol and/or the animal of the particular year

Color a Dragon Mask

Look up each child's Chinese Zodiac sign by their year of birth and then give them a coloring sheet of the animal and some facts about it

Make Dragon Puppets

Ideas for Great Games:

Pin the Tail (sticker) on the Dragon

Feed the Dragon (make a dragon head and throw something in its mouth)

Wishing Well

Have kids make a wish and throw lucky gold coins into the well.

Pick up Sticks

Pick up things with Chopsticks

Play Lame Chicken (A Chinese Kids Game)

Have a chopsticks race, where each team has to pick up cotton balls and

put them on the table

Some Possible Activities:

Give a 5 minute presentation on Chinese new year customs and

superstitions

Read some Chinese New Stories and/or Chinese Folktales

Parade - have the kids walk around the library or neighborhood in a

parade with noisemakers and drums

Dragon Dance - Lead person wears a dragon head while followers are

draped in material, tablecloth, or simply twirl streamers.

Other thoughts:

Give everyone who comes a "lucky" red envelope with chocolate coins.

Do activites or crafts related to the animal which it is the Year of...

Decorate in red and gold- the traditional colors of the Chinese

New Year.

Food to Serve:

You could serve pot-stickers or won-ton dumplings (microwave them before the party)

Fortune Cookies