Chinese Zodiac Free Printable Activities
This post is about the Chinese Zodiac for children and the Lunar New Year. Safari Ltd. sent me a package of Chinese Zodiac animals (non-affiliate link) in one of their Super Toobs, and they are super cute! This is for the “How i Safari” promotion going on now. This post includes a free printable with corresponding activities and some information about the Lunar New Year. There was no other compensation involved, and this review is my own opinion.
Children will enjoy these figurines! Gnorman the Green Gnome recently visited Shanghai and Lunar New Year preparations were everywhere, so it is fresh on his mind.
Lunar New Year is not only a Chinese event although many people think so. It marks the new calendar year in other countries such as Vietnam, Japan, Korea, Tibet, Thailand, Mongolia, and others. This happens not on January 1st, but a date determined by the lunar calendar. Some years have 13 moons which complicates the determination of the date.
The Chinese Zodiac is a little different in some interpretations. Vietnam uses the goat which is in the Safari Ltd. Set, and people in China might use the sheep or ram or goat as the Chinese character can mean any of these 3 animals. Did you know Chinese names often have a character handed down or shared between generations?
Did you know a round lantern is used for the New Year in China, and not the usual oblong shaped lanterns? Have you noticed that? I did not realize the difference until Gnorman told me about his business trip. This link is a post with a free A to Z slide show about Shanghai.
Children will like finding their own birth year and corresponding animal, so I included some letter sized placemats in the PDF. Although it is not the actual full year for people who follow the lunar calendar as that is coordinated with the cycles of the moon, so that information about dates may be checked at this link. Some people think the birth year and month determines personality. One of the placemats is in the Chinese style and has a spot for chopsticks, and one is in a western style. Gnorman the Gnome thinks chopsticks are very difficult as they are so much larger than him. Children are surprisingly good at using this utensil if given the opportunity.
These activities may be used with or without the realistic animal figurines.
Chinese-Zodiac-activity (printable opens here, directions included)
A second free printable has two placemats 11 inches by 17 inches for people who have that size of laminator. 11-in-by-17-in-Chinese-Zodiac-placemats-free-printable
The Lunar New Year is more than about the change of the year, as it is a chance for a new beginning. Extra cleaning is done prior to the change of years to ensure good luck. Cleaning during the celebrations is thought to throw good luck out of a house, so it is not advised. New clothing is worn to also help bring good luck, and some people wear red underwear. Dragons are considered lucky, and are credited with bringing rain as the Lunar New Year represents Spring. You will also see peach blossoms everywhere as peaches represent longevity. Peach blossoms are so noteworthy in China that 3rd day of the 3rd month also has its own Peach Blossom Festival.
Feng Shui is popular in China. There are also superstitions believed by some. Gnorman noticed there are buildings without a floor numbered 4, as the word for is similar to the Chinese word for death. If a hotel caters to westerners, it may not have a 4th or a 13th floor in the numbering system. When Gnorman went to work, however, his western employer did have a 4th floor.
There are other ideas about increasing luck, too. Living by water is considered fortunate. Newborns are given silver bracelet, sliver amulet to protect against misfortune. The number 8 is also thought to be lucky!
Thank you for reading, I. Reid and Carolyn

Little Art City on the Prairie: Impressions of Faulkton South Dakota
Written by I. Reid, Gary L. Wilhelm, and Carolyn Wilhelm, Cover Illustrator Pieter Els
The beauty of the prairie and the loveliness of the area inspired the main author, I. Reid. Faulkton is an example of a city that refused to simply exist (and perhaps become obsolete) and turned to its arts council for ideas.
A Mom: What is an Adoptive Mother? Children’s Book
What is a mother? A mother is the same whether children are adopted or biological. In this story, the child has been adopted. It is written from the viewpoint of the child to help explain mother is the same in any family. Mom helps check under the bed for monsters, reads books, and watches movies with the girl. She does the same things every mother does. Visually, the images show a white mother and an Asian daughter. The main author, I-Reid, has previously written blog posts for this blog, and now she has written her first children’s picture book.
Kingdom of Back by Marie Lu Book Review by I. Reid
See my book review of Bunnicula at this link. There is a free instant PDF download educational printable at the link as well.
Chinese Zodiac Free Printable Activities and information written by I. Reid
Here is a link to my informational post for parents to help them understand the ratings for Japanese Manga books.
Discussion questions for the movie and book, Howl’s Moving Castle (free instant download at the blog post)
Read about American farm horses and enjoy 3 freebies at that post, as well.
I love horses, so naturally, there is a second horse post. This post has a graphing freebie.
My own review of A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park is towards the end of this post with a free literature unit supplement for teachers.
I have traveled extensively, and have written a post with 8 top travel tips for you to consider.
After my trip to Shanghai, I contributed to this presentation freebie as well.
Experiments are fun, and this post tells about both the dancing dime as well as the dry ice experiments I described.
I added information to the shells Montessori post at this link.
I added information to the shells Montessori post at this link.
Critique of Two Books About the Champawat Tiger: Man-Eaters of Kumaon and No Beast So Fierce by I-Reid
A Wrinkle in Time Movie Review by I. Reid
Happy Lunar New Year and Spring Festival 2022 informational blog post by I. Reid
Blog posts by I. Reid include book reviews, science, history, and travel.