Celebrating Chinese New Year 2025 with Your Family: Fun Traditions & Activities for Kids
The excitement of a new year isn’t over yet! The Chinese New Year, also known as the Lunar New Year, is one of the most celebrated holidays in the world. In 2025, families around the globe will welcome the Year of the Snake on January 29, marking the beginning of a fresh, prosperous year filled with joy, traditions, and cultural festivities.
At Language Kids World, we love introducing children to global celebrations in fun and engaging ways. Whether you’re looking to teach your kids about Chinese traditions or want to add some festive activities to your own celebrations, this guide is packed with exciting ways to ring in the Year of the Snake with your family!
What is Chinese New Year?
Chinese New Year is based on the lunar calendar, meaning the date changes each year. It’s celebrated for 15 days, ending with the Lantern Festival. Families come together to honor traditions, share meals, and wish for a year of happiness and prosperity.
Each Chinese New Year is represented by an animal from the Chinese zodiac, and 2025 is the Year of the Snake. The Snake is known for being wise, intuitive, and graceful, making this a great year to focus on learning, curiosity, and kindness!
Exciting Chinese New Year Traditions to Share with Your Kids
Celebrating Chinese New Year is a fantastic way to introduce children to another culture in a fun and meaningful way. Here are some key traditions and activities your family can enjoy together!
- Cleaning the House for a Fresh Start
Why? Before the new year begins, families clean their homes to sweep away bad luck and make space for good fortune.
Family Activity:
- Make it fun by turning it into a “clean-up race” with your kids!
- Let them help dust, organize toys, or tidy up their room.
- Explain that cleaning before the new year welcomes good energy into your home.
Important: On the first day of Chinese New Year, avoid sweeping or taking out the trash—it might “sweep away” good luck!
- Decorating with Red for Good Luck
Red is the luckiest color in Chinese culture and symbolizes happiness, prosperity, and good fortune.
Family Activity:
- Hang red lanterns or paper cutouts on doors and windows.
- Make DIY red banners with Chinese New Year wishes like “Good Luck” (福 – Fú) and “Happiness” (喜 – Xǐ).
- Use gold accents since red and gold together bring extra prosperity!
- Giving and Receiving Red Envelopes
One of the most exciting traditions for children is receiving red envelopes (hóngbāo), filled with money, from parents and relatives. This symbolizes good luck and blessings for the new year!
Family Activity:
- Instead of money, fill red envelopes with kind notes, stickers, or small surprises for your kids.
- Let your children decorate their own envelopes with gold markers and stickers.
- Teach them to say “Gōng xǐ fā cái!” (Wishing you prosperity!) when giving or receiving red envelopes.
- Enjoying a Special Family Feast
Food plays a huge role in Chinese New Year, with special dishes that symbolize luck, prosperity, and happiness.
Traditional Lucky Foods:
🥟 Dumplings (Jiaozi) – Represent wealth and good fortune.
🍜 Longevity Noodles – Symbolize a long and happy life.
🐟 Fish (Yú) – Means abundance and prosperity.
🍊 Mandarins & Oranges – Bring luck and good fortune.
Family Activity:
- Make homemade dumplings with your kids! Let them fill and shape the dumplings (even if they get messy, it’s all part of the fun!).
- Serve long noodles and encourage kids to slurp them without breaking for extra good luck!
- Set up a fruit station with oranges and let kids decorate them with stickers.
- Watching a Dragon or Lion Dance Performance
Chinese New Year celebrations often feature lion and dragon dances, believed to scare away evil spirits and bring good luck.
Family Activity:
- Search for local Chinese New Year parades and watch a live lion dance.
- Watch videos of traditional dragon dances on YouTube and have a mini dance party at home!
- Let kids make their own dragon masks with paper, markers, and streamers.
- Making Paper Lanterns for the Lantern Festival
The 15th and final day of Chinese New Year is celebrated with the Lantern Festival, where people release beautiful lanterns into the sky or display them in their homes.
Family Activity:
- Make simple paper lanterns using red construction paper and gold glitter.
- Hang them around your home to create a festive atmosphere.
- Turn off the lights and have a glow-in-the-dark lantern parade around your house!
- Learning Fun Chinese Words & Phrases
Use the New Year as an opportunity to introduce children to some simple Chinese words and phrases!
Happy New Year! – Xīn nián kuài lè! (新年快乐!)
Wishing you prosperity! – Gōng xǐ fā cái! (恭喜发财!)
Year of the Snake – Shé nián! (蛇年!)
Good luck! – Hǎo yùn! (好运!)
Family Activity:
- Write these phrases on flashcards and let your kids practice saying them.
- Make a game out of matching the Chinese words with pictures!
Bringing Chinese New Year into Your Family’s Traditions
Celebrating Chinese New Year is a wonderful way to expose children to different cultures and traditions from around the world. Even if it’s your first time celebrating, these fun activities can make the holiday special and meaningful for your family.
Want to start a new family tradition? Here are some ideas:
- Create a “Wish Tree” where family members hang their hopes for the new year.
- Have a yearly dumpling-making night.
- Watch a family-friendly movie about Chinese New Year, like Over the Moon.
- Make it a tradition to learn one new Chinese phrase each year!
Celebrating the Year of the Snake Together
The Year of the Snake in 2025 brings an opportunity for reflection, wisdom, and learning—making it the perfect time to introduce your kids to the magic of Chinese New Year! Whether it’s decorating with red lanterns, making dumplings, or learning new words, these simple activities will create lasting memories and a deeper appreciation for world cultures.
How will your family celebrate Chinese New Year this year? Tell us in the comments!
Wishing you a joyful and lucky Year of the Snake! 🐍
Founder and Director of Education at Language Kids.
M. Ed.
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