Chinese Dragons Puppets

Ni hao,

This time last year our entire building was in a frenzy, learning about China, it’s culture, it’s craft, it’s tradition, and it’s language. All of this in effort to welcome our special guest Principal Lee, all the way from Shijiazhuang Ning Yuan Primary School in Heibei Province, in China. 

That is when my students in grades 3-5 made this beauty, which now adorns out school cafeteria.
*photo by M Brophy

In planning for his arrival I made these fun dragon puppets with my kindergartners

 and I just had to do it again this year.

 

Dragon eggs sparkle like the finest jewels
in all the world. But don't think a little dragon
is going to poke it's head out of this egg...
It takes 1,500 years for the dragon to develop.
It starts as a snake, then grows to a fish, and
then finally a little dragon that grows and grows.

http://china.mrdonn.org/stories.html

This link has a great PowerPoint that you can read if you want to know more about Chinese Dragons and their story.

I start out telling the legend of the dragon by showing this egg. Students have fun guessing what it is and where it came from.

While learning a bit about another culture and making great art my kindergartners are also learning about the ancient tradition of story telling. They better skills in cutting and gluing and learn the “Art Magic Trick” (you know, where you fold the paper, draw a shape, cut it out, and ooohhh aHHH! It makes 2!). I like to make a big deal out of it. We also learn the fine art of following directions and a whole lot about SHAPES!!!!