Dressed in similar red silk clothing, this student holds a beautiful doll from China. On Monday, January 26th, kindergarten students in Mrs. Jessica Crofton and Mrs. Kristine Veltri's class at the Locust School welcomed in the Year of the Ox with a Chinese New Year luncheon of white rice, fried rice, egg rolls, dumplings, lo mein and chicken and broccoli. As part of their "A Trip Around the World" learning theme, the kindergartners focused on China during the last two weeks of January. They studied its location on the globe and important landmarks, such as the Great Wall of China, its culture, language, customs, foods, and numerical system.

One of the most important traditions the students learned about was the celebration of Chinese New Year. According to tales and legends, Chinese New Year began in reaction to an ongoing fight against a mythical beast called the Nian ("Year" in Chinese). To protect themselves from the Nian, the villagers would put food in front of their doors at the beginning of every year. It was believed that after the Nian ate the food they prepared, it wouldn't hurt the villagers or their animals. One year, the legend continues, people saw that the Nian was scared away by a child wearing red. Hence, just before the arrival of the new year, villagers would dress in red and hang red lanterns and red spring scrolls on their windows and doors. People also used firecrackers and dressed in giant dragon or lion costumes to frighten away the Nian.

A part of the Dragon or Lion Parade tradition is the beating of drums to scare away bad spirits. Here one of the students tries a drum Mrs. Lew purchased in China. Mrs. Jessica Crofton's class welcomed a special guest to their classroom to herald in Chinese New Year, parent Mrs. Lew, who recently traveled to China. Mrs. Lew and Mrs. Crofton planned a morning of listening and hands-on activities for the students. Mrs. Lew explained that, according to Chinese legend, children born in the Year of the Ox would be hard-working, honest and intelligent. The students listened to a story, created elaborate dragon parade sticker pictures, colored dragon fans, and passed around items from China Mrs. Lew brought to share. At the conclusion of the activities, the children received goodie bags with small holiday tokens. "We got red envelopes for good luck," commented one happy kindergartner.

Among the many items Mrs. Lew brought to share with the children was this jade statue of Buddha. "The children thoroughly enjoyed Mrs. Lew's visit," commented Mrs. Crofton. "It is always a great pleasure to have parents come into our classroom and share their experiences with us. It enables the children to see the connection between school, home and our community."

Gong hei fat choi! ("Congratulations and be prosperous.")

Mrs. Jessica Crofton's class made Chinese hats illustrating the 12 lunar signs and corresponding years. On Chinese New Year, Mrs. Lew read Mary Man-Kong's Lucky New Year to students at the Locust School.