The Best Chinese New Year Books for Kids
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We usually do something special for Chinese New Year. My boys love Chinese food and have studied China for our homeschool support group’s International Festival. We have an uncle who lived in China for many years and has sent them photos and goodies like Chinese money and trinkets. Adding these items to the center of the table makes it festive for the holiday.
- Each year we either go out for a special Chinese food lunch or stay home and cook one ourselves.
- Some of our favorite books for read aloud time are: The Great Wall of China by Leonard Everett Fisher, and Ms. Frizzle’s Adventures: Imperial China by Joanna Cole and Bruce Degen. The Great Wall of China is a concise history of the building of the Great Wall, and Ms. Frizzle’s Adventures contains tons of facts about China as Ms. Frizzle and the gang travel back in time 1000 years and learn about Chinese culture and history.
- One year, we visited a pet store after a Chinese food lunch out, and we added a new critter to our growing menagerie: a teeny baby beta. The boys named him Small Noodle Big Bowl. Unfortunately Small Noodle didn’t want to stay long.
- Here’s a neat painting/collage thumbprint Chinese lantern activity on Let’s Go Fly a Kite.
Multicultural Celebrations
2017 is the Year of the Rooster! We are spending some time learning more about Chinese culture and history by reading books and doing hands-on projects, like making these pot stickers and creating character sketches with our free printable Chinese New Year activity pack below.
What Chinese New Year books do you enjoy reading? Please share your picks with us!
Be sure to scroll down and download the activity pack, and enjoy spending time learning about this Chinese holiday.
Gong Xi Fa Cai!
Happy reading!
Free Printable
Click here or on the image below for a free printable Chinese New Year Library Checklist and Activity for Kids!
Our favorite Chinese New Year Books for Kids
- Lost and Found: Adèle & Simon in China
- Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story from China
- The Empty Pot
- The Story about Ping
- Happy New Year! Kung-Hsi Fa-Ts’Ai
- Lion Dancer: Ernie Wan’s Chinese New Year
- The Dancing Dragon
- The Paper Dragon
- Daisy Comes Home
- Ruby’s Wish
- A New Year’s Reunion: A Chinese Story
- In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson
- Day Of The Dragon-King
- China: Land of the Emperor’s Great Wall
- The Great Wall Of China
- Ms. Frizzle’s Adventures: Imperial China
- Welcome to China
- China



I loved celebrating Chinese New Year with my kids. Any excuse for a party, right?
That’s right, Michele. And for my kids–any excuse for hot tea and Chinese noodles! 🙂
Great list of books – I don’t know if you’ve ever noticed our “trips” each month, but this month, we’re heading to China and many of the titles you mention show up on my list, too! Have a great week!
That’s cool, Lisa! Thanks so much for linking up each week!
Thanks for the feature!
Thank you for linking up! 🙂