Gong Xi Fa Cai!*

Next Week: Books for a special month

Issue 04, 2017 Founded by Betty Debnam

Mini Fact: This year is Gong Xi the Year of the Rooster. Chinese Years are named Fa Cai!* for animals; last year was the Year of * Happy New Year! the Monkey. Some dragons can be 100 feet long! Do you celebrate the new year? For Getting ready On the last day centuries, people throughout the world have Before the festival, gifts and food are The Lantern Festival marks the end of held special celebrations during the fi rst days bought. Different foods mean different things: the Chinese New Year. This is the night of the new year. • Long noodles signify a long life. the moon is full in the But different cultures use different • A whole fi sh means there will be plenty sky. Lanterns come in calendars, and the new year does not come at to eat. all sizes and shapes, the same time for everyone. • Fruits and candy ensure that the future such as birds, animals, In many places, such as China, the new will be sweet. butterfl ies and dragons. year comes at a different time each year. When The fun begins on New Year’s Eve, when Dragons twist through the streets, it comes depends on the calendar in that people gather for big family dinners. They wear carried by 10 or more dancers holding poles culture. Many areas, such as Thailand and brightly colored clothes as they sing and play. to support them. The dragons are made of Cambodia, celebrate New Year’s in the spring. At midnight, people open their doors and plastic, bamboo, paper and linen. This year, Chinese New Year began on windows to let the old year out and welcome Fireworks light up the sky and make Saturday, Jan. 28. The Mini Page learns more the new one. They also light fi recrackers and loud booms. about this winter festival. bang on drums to scare away the old year. People say “Gong Xi Fa Cai!” (gong A long holiday New Year’s Day zye fah kye) to each other. It literally means “Congratulations on making a big fortune!” The Chinese follow a lunar calendar for The next day, Chinese But it’s their way of saying “Happy New their traditional events. On the new moon communities hold festivals Year!” between Jan. 21 and Feb. 20, or the second where they dress in new moon after the winter solstice, the new costumes and parade year begins. (The winter solstice is the shortest through the streets. day of the year. This winter, it fell on Dec. 21.) Dancers and other artists The celebration lasts for one or two weeks! perform for the crowds. Resources Some may celebrate with a Lion Dance. Chinese families prepare Visiting family On the Web: for the new year by • bit.ly/2htHAIS cleaning and decorating Look at China on a their houses with bright globe. It is a huge country • youtu.be/XiFeXRxA1vM colors and fl owers. They with more than a billion At the library: write verses on red paper people. During the • “Celebrate Chinese New Year” by and post them around Chinese New Year, many their doorways to greet Carolyn Otto the new year. people travel to other • “Chinese New Year” by David F. Marx photo by Dounai/Wikimedia Commons Dounai/Wikimedia by photo parts of the country to see family and friends.

Try ’n’ Find Mini Jokes Words that remind us of Chinese New Year are hidden in this puzzle. Some words are hidden backward or diagonally, Stewart: Why did and some letters are used twice. See if you can ﬁ nd: they call the mermaid average in school? CALENDAR, C L O I C G R A N U L B C D Y Sue: Because she was a “sea” student! CELEBRATION, CHINESE, A S L A N T E R N P L H I N D COLORS, DANCE, L E V A R T Y C A M I N O O M DRAGON, FAMILY, E D F L O W E R S N W E N I Y Eco Note FESTIVAL, FLOWERS, N R H O M E A W E R A E Y L A FOOD, HOLIDAY, HOME, D A E D M D H S C O L O R S D LANTERN, LION, LUNAR, A G C A E F E S T I V A L O I Litter isn’t just ugly; it can also hurt animals. Deer MOON, NEW, PARADE, R O N C E L E B R A T I O N L and other animals cut their tongues on SOLSTICE, TRAVEL, YEAR. Q N A R F A M I L Y H F D N O sharp, half-opened cans. Six-pack rings I Z D Y E D S O L S T I C E H can trap and strangle birds and ﬁ sh. Make sure you throw garbage in cans, not on the ground. Pick up trash you see lying around. Snip your six-pack rings so no Cook’s Corner animals can get stuck in them. Ask adults Chinese Beef not to throw out cigarette butts. Animals eat them, which can be deadly. You’ll need: • 1 cup chicken broth adapted with permission from “The New 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the • 1 1/2 pounds ground beef • 1/3 cup soy sauce Earth” by The Earthworks Group, Andrews McMeel Publishing (andrewsmcmeel.com) • 1 medium onion, chopped • 2 cups rice, cooked • 1 (4-ounce) can mushrooms, drained For later: • 1 (8-ounce) can water chestnuts, Look in your newspaper for notices drained about Chinese New Year’s events. What to do: 1. Cook ground beef in a skillet over medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes or until brown. Drain well. 2017 Andrews McMeel Syndication Teachers: 2. Add onion. Cover and cook over low heat for 5 minutes. Stir often. For standards-based activities to 3. Add remaining ingredients except rice. Cook on low for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally. accompany this feature, visit: 5. Serve over rice. Serves 4 to 6. The Mini Page® © bbs.amuniversal.com/teaching_guides.html * You’ll need an adult’s help with this recipe. need an adult’s * You’ll . 7 Little Words for Kids Use the letters in the boxes to make a word with the same meaning as devices Amazon the clue. The numbers in parentheses represent the number of letters in the solution. Each letter combination can be used only once, but all letter combinations will be necessary to complete the puzzle. 1. breakfast drink (5) OR BU JUI PER 2. where crops are grown (5) Download the app on Apple and 3. insects (4) RD CE HE ET . 4. grove of fruit trees (7) 5. group of cows (4) ONI CH LD PEP 6. spicy pizza topping (9)

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