An easy paper craft to celebrate Chinese New Year, including a free printable.
This dancing paper dragon is a fun way to learn about Chinese New Year (which falls this year at the end of January).
The folded paper plate rocking base means that it doubles as a card, so you could send it to a friend with a message inside.
To make a dancing Dragon Craft for Chinese New Year, you will need:
– a paper plate, or thick card circle (you can use this template)
– coloured paper (traditionally red)
– scissors
– a black pen
– googly eyes (optional)
– a pipe-cleaner (optional)
– this free printable dragon template and this one too
– stickers and /or glitter (optional)
COST: pennies
AGE: young children and up
TIME:
20-30 minutes
How-to make a dancing Dragon Craft for Chinese New Year:
- Fold your paper plate (or card circle) in half to form the rocking (or ‘dancing’) base
- Print your 2 dragons (left and right-facing) on to the coloured card
- Cut carefully around the dragons (I found this easiest to do both at the same time)
- Decorate your dragon with scales, stickers, glitter, or anything else you like
- Stick your dragons to the rocking base (one on each side) and to each other at the top (head and back – see photo above for guidance)
- OPTIONAL: add googly eyes
- OPTIONAL: add a pipe-cleaner moustache by making a hole in the dragon’s nostril and threading the pipe-cleaner through, then folding in half at the midpoint and shaping the rest into a curl/spiral.
- Check that your dragon ‘dances’ (i.e. it rocks back and forth nicely. If it is too front-heavy (which it may be with the added weight of the pipe-cleaner), simply tape a penny inside the rocking base at the tail end. It should now ‘dance’ properly.
More Chinese New Year crafts from some of my favourite bloggers:
The Gingerbread House’s tealight holder
Me and My Shadow’s junk modelling firecracker decoration
Domestic Goddesque’s candy cane horses
PeaklePie’s paper plate horse and Chinese fans
Crystal’s Tiny Treasures’ felt horse finger puppets
Evans-Crittens’ lucky red money envelopes
Jennifer’s Little World’s loo roll dragon puppets
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What a great activity for the children and cheap too. The googly eyes are really effective aren’t they and it’s amazing how just using red, gold and black can look so traditional, striking and bold.
Thanks Joy! I agree – the red, gold, black combo works well (lucky I had some red paper from my auntie Biz) 🙂
Fantabulous! Love it!
Thanks Kelly! 😀
Ohh this is beautiful! I love the fact that it dances too!
Thank you Liz – I love crafts that move!
I LOVE this – I showed Peakles and she wants one for her bedroom window! Brilliant idea 🙂
Thanks Helen – great idea to put one in a window! Ours is hanging over a ribbon along the staircase and looks as if he’s crawling along it… 😉
Great idea and looks fun, I love the way it rocks too. #TuesdayTutorials