Lunar New Year Library Lesson – Chinese New Year 2026 – Year of the Horse

Description

FAST FACTS ABOUT THIS LUNAR NEW YEAR LIBRARY LESSON

• Recommended for: Grades 2-5
• Lesson Duration: 1-2 library lessons (about 50 minutes total)
• Formats: PPT, Google Slides, PDF
• Editable: YES, all text is editable

MADE ESPECIALLY FOR:

• new elementary librarians
• elementary librarians on Specials rotation
• secondary teachers who are now elementary librarians
• anyone who just doesn’t have time to create detailed library lessons

FREE ANNUAL UPDATES!

This was last updated on December 29, 2025. All slides and activities now reflect 2026 Lunar New Year dates and The Year of the Horse.

If you already own it, just redownload the file to get the free update. The Google Link has also been updated.

DISCLAIMER:

Please note that this presentation is designed to complement a read-aloud. The actual read-aloud story comes from you! I cannot include a recorded read-aloud due to copyright restrictions.

HERE’S WHAT YOU’LL GET:

• 55-slide PPT + Google™ Slides presentation
• Scavenger Hunt Activity, 2 differentiated levels + answer key (3 pages, PDF and PPT)
• List of 31 Recommended Reads for Lunar New Year (1 page, PDF and PPT)
• Lesson plan templates for Grades K-5, includes AASL, CCSS, and TEKS (9 pages, PDF and PPT)

ABOUT THIS LUNAR NEW YEAR LIBRARY LESSON

This Lunar New Year Library Lesson mainly focuses on China (I lived in Shanghai and Suzhou from 2014-2020).

Every slide in the presentation is illustrated with brightly-colored, high-resolution clipart and photos for K-6. I took several of the photos in the library lesson when I lived in China.

PART I – LUNAR NEW YEAR LIBRARY LESSON SLIDES:

This is intended as a librarian-led, whole-group discussion. Slides include:

• introduction to the China and Lunar New Year celebrations in China
• “China” in American Sign Language (video link)
• China is on the continent of Asia
• Lunar New Year changes dates every year
• foods, gifts, decorations

PART II – SCROLLING SLIDES INCLUDE:

The slides in Part II need to be set on a timer.  Students watch the slideshow to find the images and information included in the differentiated Scavenger Hunt activities. Instructions with visuals to set timers are included.

The scrolling slides include fun facts about:

• learn to count to five in Chinese
• learn to write numbers 1-5 in Chinese characters
• Vocabulary words: prosperity and dumplings
• Would-You-Rathers
• library skills review

SCAVENGER HUNTS

All my Elementary Library Lessons include two differentiated scavenger hunt activities.

• differentiated (one is images-only; one is images + text)
• 2 pages, editable
• Scavenger Hunt #1 is an images-only hunt. Students can complete this scavenger hunt without reading the text on the slides.
• Scavenger Hunt #2 includes both images and text. This one is for the students who are able to read the Part II slideshow. This scavenger hunt includes images and questions about the information in the slideshow.
• Scavenger Hunt #2 includes answer key

LIST OF RECOMMENDED READS

Give this printable list to parents and teachers.

• 31 Lunar New Year titles for kids
• includes picture books, fiction, graphic novels, and nonfiction & biography
• titles are editable, so you can customize the books included for your library
• All titles were hand-selected by a veteran school librarian for quality, diversity, positive reviews, and currency.

TAKE-HOME EXTENSION ACTIVITIES

Students love sharing their knowledge! With this 2-page Lunar New Year Take-Home Extension Activities Handout, students can:

• quiz siblings, friends, and family members about some of the Lunar New Year facts they learned in the lesson
• make a bowl of long noodles for Chinese New Year
• read Chinese New Year picture books
• review vocabulary words from the lesson
• learn to draw a panda using simple, step-by-step directions
• remember how to sign “China” in American Sign Language
• write Chinese numbers 1-10
• 2 pages, text is editable in PPT, Google Slides, or PDF

EDITABLE LESSON PLAN

• Pre-filled with what students will do, concepts they will learn, and library skills
• AASL, CCSS, and TEKS standards for this lesson
• Includes areas for your own notes on the lesson
• 100% editable – You can even change the sizes and names of individual boxes.

ACCESSIBILITY

All parts of this Chinese New Year Library Lesson are optimized for readability. Here’s how:

• uses only two fonts (Arial and KG Blank Space Solid)
• Arial font is one of 8 accessibility fonts recommended by the British Dyslexia Association. It is also pre-loaded on most school computers.
• all slides feature black text on a solid white background
• no cursive fonts, fancy fonts, or random capitalizations
• body text line spacing is 1.5
• minimal text on each slide
• lots of white space on each slide
• scavenger hunt includes two versions. One is images only and requires no reading. The other is for students who can read short text well.

MORE LUNAR NEW YEAR