This post was sponsored by Ling Ling, all opinions expressed in my post are my own.

Have fun with these 5 ways to celebrate Chinese New Year with kids!

As a child, my parents introduced me to a variety of cultures from around the world. This was often done through preparing international cuisine at home, traveling to different places both locally and abroad, and shopping at different ethnic stores. I hope to share with my children international traditions, starting with simple crafts, cooking projects, and a little research into different customs around the world. Here are five fun ways to celebrate Chinese New Year with kids.

Celebrate Chinese New Year with Kids: Paper Lanterns

This is a simple craft that I remember learning in elementary school. It’s great for kids ages 5 – 10, to complete either independently or with adult assistance. To make ours a little extra special, we used gold glittery paper tape around the top and bottom edges and along the backside to secure the lantern and a black strip of tape for the handle. It would be fun to make one with patterned papers, too!

Celebrate Chinese New Year with Kids: Homemade Fortune Cookies

We made these fortune cookies a few years back, and I think we should probably make them again because they are so much fun! With just a few ingredients and short cooking time, you can have a whole batch done in about a half hour. If your child enjoys writing, have him/her come up with the fortunes to put inside the cookies. It’s a great family project! Here is our Homemade Fortune Cookies recipe.

Celebrate Chinese New Year with Kids: Culinary Adventure

Beyond just the fortune cookie making idea above, take your children on a Chinese Culinary Adventure! For me, I don’t mind standing over the stove all day cooking up dinner, but most people don’t have that kind of time {or culinary knowledge} and that is absolutely okay. Ling Ling has your back! Ling Ling offers several different tasty Asian-inspired dishes, like fried rice, pot stickers, and noodles. We tried the fried rice for the first time. It’s available in five flavors, inspired by different regional Asian cuisines: Yakitori Chicken, Yakiniku Beef, Thai-Style Chicken, Chinese-Style Vegetable, and Bibimbap Beef. Within minutes either on the stovetop or microwave, your children can experience new flavors they may not have ever tried before! Find Ling Ling products near you.

To make a complete meal, you can make this simple Asian-Inspired Cucumber Salad. It’s super simple to make – Just takes a few minutes and a handful of ingredients! My daughter likes cucumbers, my son likes red bell peppers, and they both love carrots, so it’s a win for my family!

Ingredients:

• 1 seedless cucumber
• 1 large carrot
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 T rice vinegar
• 1 t soy sauce
• 1 t sesame oil
• 1/2 t sugar
• 1/2 t freshly grated ginger
• 1 t sesame seeds

Directions: Chop the cucumber, carrot, and bell pepper into evenly-sized pieces and add to a bowl. In a separate smaller bowl, combine the rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and sugar. Whisk to form a dressing. Toss the sliced vegetables in the dressing and top with the sesame seeds. You can serve this immediately or make it about an hour ahead to allow the dressing to fully flavor the vegetables.

Celebrate Chinese New Year with Kids: Paper Plate Panda

Two of the most popular posts on my site have been my Paper Plate Owl and Paper Plate Penguin crafts, so I thought… Why not a Paper Plate Panda for Chinese New Year, too? This is a fun craft to introduce children to an animal that is native to China. You can also talk about their natural habitats, the bamboo they eat, where in China they can be found, and maybe even visit a local zoo that has pandas. For old kids, they can even write a science report that contains all of this information.

Celebrate Chinese New Year with Kids: Red Envelopes

Red envelopes are a special Chinese New Year tradition. Red envelopes are generally presented at large social gatherings, like holiday celebrations and weddings. The red color represents luck, and it is believed it wards off evil spirits. They are given by older people to younger people, and they contain an even number amount of money. There are even digital red envelopes sent via the internet nowadays as a way to carry on this tradition with family and friends who live far away.

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