Adult-led activities
Spring festival
It is important that settings acknowledge and allow children to reflect upon the diverse religious and cultural experiences of our society. The Chinese New Year, falling this year on 12 February, is an important spring festival with a variety of customs. The underlying spirit of the celebration is a sincere wish for peace and happiness for family and friends.
Key learning Intentions
To begin to know about their own cultures and beliefs and those of other people
To create a traditional 'red packet'/ Chinese lantern/dancing dragon Adult: child ratio 1: up to 6
Resources
Paper in various colours including red and white 3red crayons/colouring pencils * black and gold marker pens * scissors * straws * glue/sticky tape * junk decorative materials * reference books * examples of Chinese calligraphy * Chinese red packets (in which families enclose gifts of money for children), New Year cards and decorations - all can be bought cheaply in Chinese supermarkets. (See websites for details of reference materials.)
Preparation
Collect resources and note any media information/children's news programmes. Integrate Chinese New Year in forward planning.
Activity content
Decorations and calligraphy
* Encourage the children to spend time looking at the decorations and calligraphy and talk about how they are used in celebrations. Sensitively encourage children who have had personal involvement in the festival to share their experiences with the group.
* Allow the children lots of opportunities to experiment with the designs.
* Provide support where needed, but allow children to be as independent as possible and to pursue the activity to their own personal conclusion.
Red packets
* Fold red paper into small oblongs and stick together.
* Decorate using black or gold markers, in a style similar to Chinese calligraphy.
Chinese lanterns
* Fold an oblong sheet of paper in half, lengthways.
* Make cuts, quite close to each other, from the fold line to about 2.5cm from the other side.
* Unfold the paper and stick the short edges of the paper together.
* Make a handle with a strip of paper and attach to the top of the lantern.
Dancing dragon
* Provide small squares of paper on which to draw a dragon's head and tail.
* Cut out and decorate.
* Fold long strips of paper into accordion pleats for the dragon's body.
* Stick on the head and the tail.
* Tape a straw to both the head and the tail and make the dragon dance!
Child-initiated learning
Encourage children to explore and develop their own interests and ideas across the curriculum by adding topic resources to the basic provision.
Outdoors
Additional resources
3Tape/CD player and Chinese music tapes/CDs 3Cymbals, bells, gongs (also provide suitable junk materials for children to experiment and make their own) 3Ribbons or lengths of silky fabric attached to short lengths of bamboo or dowelling 3Art materials
Possible learning experiences/activities
* Listening and responding to world music - dancing, singing, playing instruments.
* Dancing with ribbons - exploring space and shape, moving with imagination, control and co-ordination.
* Creative work such as drawing and painting in response to musical stimuli.
The practitioner role
* Ensure there is enough space for children to use resources safely.
* Empower the children to be able to adjust the space and equipment as play develops.
* Experiment with and model a variety of dance sequences and encourage parents and visitors to participate.
* Admire and comment upon children's accomplishments. Encourage them to comment on their own abilities and share significant achievements.
* Provide technical support (ribbons can become tangled, etc).
* Model active listening to different styles of music. Encourage discussion about preferences, styles, instrumentation, voices and languages heard.
* Observe and note children's developing cultural awareness and their verbal, physical, creative and emotional responses to music and dance.
Creative and literacy areas Additional resources 3Red paper 3Black and gold markers, pens, pencils, brushes and paint 3Make Chinese-style calligraphy brushes by attaching a folded piece of flexi-foam to the end of a paintbrush with a rubber band. Cut to shape and experiment to produce broad sweeping strokes 3'Happy New Year' signs and cards, red packets 3Material showing Chinese script and numerals such as pictures, books, newspapers and menus Possible learning experiences/activities:
* Mark-making and behaving as a painter or calligrapher.
* Exploring large and small movements with writing materials.
* Looking closely at script other than English.
* Experimenting with a variety of writing implements.
The practitioner role
* Explore the resources alongside the children, encouraging discussion on personal experience of scripts and languages other than English.
* Experiment alongside the children and model critical assessment of your own techniques.
* Ensure there are sufficient resources to enable children to experiment, make mistakes and refine their attempts.
* Enable the children to initiate the activity in different areas in the setting, for example, painting on large sheets of paper in the art area, writing cards in the literacy area, using brushes and water to experiment with scripts outdoors on different surfaces.
* Observe and make notes of children's development of mark-making, fine motor skills, and their response to scripts and languages other than English.
* Encourage parents and carers to engage in the activity, particularly where they have specific skills or are uncertain about the value of the activity.
Home corner and role-play areas
Additional resources
Decorate the areas to reflect Chinese New Year celebrations:
* Red symbolises good luck. Add red artefacts, implements and clothes to the home corner and drape with red fabric. * Hang up lanterns, fairy lights, New Year cards, signs and decorations. * Blooming plants symbolise rebirth and new growth. Move houseplants into the home corner and add fresh flowers. 3Make tissue paper blossoms and add to twigs. * Platters of oranges, tangerines and dried fruits are often displayed in the home. Use plastic fruit in the home corner, but consider providing citrus and dried fruit in the snack corner or at lunch time as part of the celebration. * Every house is thoroughly cleaned before the New Year (similar to spring cleaning) to sweep away bad luck and make way for good fortune. Provide brooms, dusters, toy vacuum cleaners for the home corner. * Fill red packets with toy money. * 2002 is the Chinese Year of the Horse. Make available pictures, posters and books about horses and toy horses.
Possible learning experiences/activities
* Using artefacts and resources as a stimulus for imaginative play.
* For some children, seeing their cultural and family experiences reflected in the setting, for others, the opportunity to explore, through role play, cultural experiences other than their own.
The practitioner role
* Engage in play alongside the children, showing enthusiasm and curiosity.
* Provide information for families unfamiliar with this cultural experience.
* Empower children to share their personal experience of the celebration.
* Observe and record children's growing awareness of cultural and religious practices and their responses to imaginative stimuli.
* Empower children to adapt and develop their learning environment.
Project guide
This project recognises that:
* settings should be constantly resourced and organised in such a way as to offer learning opportunities across all areas of the Foundation Stage curriculum * topics can enhance basic provision and respond to children's interests * children need plenty of first-hand experiences and time to develop ideas, skills and concepts through play * the practitioner has a vital role in supporting children's learning.
This project, therefore, suggests:
* adult-led activities for introducing the theme * resources that enhance basic provision and facilitate learning through child-initiated play * how the practitioner can support children's learning.
When using the project, practitioners should recognise that:
* activities should be offered and never imposed on children * children's experiences, and learning, may differ from those anticipated * the learning, planned or unplanned, that takes place is valid * the process is valuable and should not be under-mined by an inappropriate emphasis on outcomes or concrete end results.
The areas of learning are indicated by:
Personal, social and emotional development
Communication,language and literacy
Mathematical development
Knowledge & understanding of the world
Physical development
Creative development
Useful websites
Websites providing resources and reference materials.
* www.kidsdomain.com/holiday/chineseny
* www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/chinesenewyear
* www.ashay.org/links.htm
