Festive Lunar New Year Craft for Kids – Make a Drum

The Lunar New Year is a time of renewal and celebration. Introduce your child to Chinese traditions as they learn to make a drum!

We at Kids Activities Blog know you will appreciate that this craft for kids uses items that you probably already have around the house.

Lunar New Year

Chinese New Year is full of tradition and beauty. The colors, red and gold, the parades, the family traditions, and the food are enough to draw children into the celebration. Furthermore, the messages are refreshing and filled with happiness and renewal. Lunar New Year celebrates the start of something new and is inspiring.

This time of year is a great opportunity to teach children about culture through learning activities and arts & crafts. We started the themed activities by reading books and taking a look at a world map to identify Asia and then China. We also looked at images of a traditional Chinese New Year celebration and landmarks located in China, like the Great Wall of China. My sons also take Mandarin at a local language school so we spent some time reviewing key vocabulary both verbally and visually with Mandarin characters.

There are many ways to incorporate learning into the Lunar New Year celebration. One such activity we made recently is a traditional Chinese Drum. This activity is easy and inexpensive. Children use glue and work on fine motor skills through stenciling and tying ribbon. Plus, the result is fun and beautiful. 

Lunar New Year Craft For Kids

Materials:

• Small Paper Plates
• Beads
• Ribbon
• Craft Sticks
• Chinese Character Stencils
• Glue
• Markers

Make A Drum to Celebrate Lunar New Year

Have fun!

Instructions:

1. Have the child gather a craft stick, two paper plates, two beads & two pieces of ribbon
2. Decorate the plates with the stencils & markers
3. Glue the top facing edges of the paper plates together
4. Help the child weave the ribbon through the paper hold punches on each side and tie onto the plate
5. Help the child tie a bead onto the other end of the ribbon
6. Glue the craft stick onto plate for handle
7. Wait to dry and then drum away

More Festive Crafts for Kids

Introduce other cultures to your child as you study their celebrations such as the Lunar New Year.  What other cultures could your child make a drum for? For more culturally creative kids activities, you don’t need to travel the world – just take a look at these:

• Lunar New Year Activity: Make a Button Snake
• Learning about Chinese Culture {Craft for Kids}
• Make a Drum from the Recycle Bin (and other creative crafts)

Tell us in the comments how you celebrated Chinese New Year!