Bring the joy of Lunar New Year to your home, school, or library — with ready-to-use free resources from JoJo Learning. 

If you're a parent like me, or a teacher, a volunteer, or simply someone who loves to share Chinese culture during the Lunar New Year, you know how meaningful (and also overwhelming!) it can be to prepare a Chinese New Year storytime for young kids.

Over the years, as my three Chinese- and English-speaking children have grown, I’ve had the joy of visiting many preschool and elementary school classrooms, acting as the “mystery reader” or the parent bringing Chinese New Year magic to life.

I’ve also helped organize international festivals since I first moved to the United States from China for graduate school at Texas A&M University. For me, every Chinese New Year has been a super busy time sharing Chinese culture.

And since 2024, with the help of some awesome local moms, dads, and kids, I’ve been hosting Lunar New Year celebrations with hundreds of attendees at local libraries — filled with music, crafts, performances, and joy.

Christine hosting Chinese New Year Story & Music Time at a local library

Christine sharing Chinese New Year Storytime with family guests, a group of 9-year-olds

Sharing Lunar New Year in schools and libraries has been so fulfilling. Heritage families get a chance to celebrate their roots; non-heritage families get to experience a vibrant new culture. And when I come across a post from a neighbor on Facebook sharing their excitement after attending, all the hours spent preparing feel totally worth it!

And yes, I have to be honest: preparing the New Year celebration is a lot! That’s why I want to share — along with many other resources we’ve featured in past New Year blogs — these two free, useful, and easy-to-use resources with you.

1. Year of the Horse Story & Music Time – Editable PPT Download

This PowerPoint presentation was adapted from three years of in-person storytimes at local libraries and schools. It’s especially designed for children ages 2–8 and assumes no prior knowledge of Chinese , making it just right for beginner learners and mixed-language groups.

Inside you’ll find:

• An introduction to Lunar New Year traditions
• Easy Chinese words and greetings — Chinese-speaking kids love saying them loud and proud, and non-Chinese-speaking kids get excited about repeating them too!
• Recommended New Year books you may read during the storytime
• Recommendation of easy Chinese songs to get the audience singing, clapping and moving! Including fun songs from the JoJo Chinese Songs for Baby & Me musical book series to get the crowds move. 
• Visuals to support your storytelling
• Fun facts about the Horse zodiac

You can use the PPT with or without an accompanying book, depending on your audience. And it’s editable. Feel free to adapt it for your child’s class or your local library.

My tip: Reach out to your child’s teacher or local librarian. They’ll likely be thrilled to have you lead a Lunar New Year storytime! We’ve been invited to more libraries than we can handle — we need more parents to help spread the Chinese New Year fire!

Download here: 

JoJo Year of the Horse. Music and Storytime Slides-PPT

JoJo Year of the Horse. Music and Storytime Slides-PDF

2. Lantern Riddle Game – Printable Set in English & Chinese

Growing up in a small mountain town in southwest China, the New Year Lantern Riddles  are one of my favorite Lunar New Year memories.

Every Lantern Festival, my family would walk through exhibitions full of hanging riddles. My dad, an "old-style" scholar and proud bookworm, and my brother, an overly confident I-know-it-all, were serious competitors. That was long before Google or AI.  We each had pen and paper, scribbling down guesses and racing to solve the hardest ones. It was hours of joyful brainwork. Our family was always among the last to leave — brimming with pride if we managed to solve the final impossible riddles.

Years ago, I created a simplified version of this game for our home party — with riddles in Chinese, English, and even Russian to include all our guests! It was a huge hit.

Chinese New Year lantern riddle fun at home

In the past two years, we set it at our local libraries, and it was a crowd favorite.

Now, I’ve made it easy for you to bring this tradition into your own celebration.

You’ll get:

• 100 riddles in English 
• 50 riddles in Chinese (Your Chinese learners would especially love these. There is so much culture and stories in these riddles. )
• Simple setup instructions
• A fun, low-prep game that works for homes, schools, or libraries

Kids and grown-ups alike love solving riddles and winning prizes (we use stickers, small toys, or candies). It’s a joyful way to stretch the mind and celebrate together.

Download here: 

-JoJo 50 Chinese Lantern Riddles – Hanging Set (Printable PDF)

-JoJo 50 Chinese Lantern Riddles – Host Answer Key (PDF)

-JoJo 100 English Lantern Riddles – Hanging Set (Printable PDF)

-JoJo 100 English Lantern Riddles – Host Answer Key (PDF)

-JoJo Lantern Riddle Instructions – Print and Display This Flyer to Explain the Rules (PDF)

Tag us @JoJo_Learning

Whether you’re hosting a school event, planning a storytime, or just want to sprinkle in some cultural fun at home, we hope these resources make your celebration easier and more joyful.

Let us know how it goes — and if you share pictures and videos, tag us @JoJoLearning so we can cheer you on!

Happy Year of the Horse!

Christine

Co-founder, JoJo Learning

Have Fun. Building Connections. Unlock Bilingual Brains. 

Check out our other blog posts:

Best YouTube and NetFlix Movies to Watch in the Chinese New Year

Simple & Fun Ways to Celebrate Chinese New Year

Fun Chinese New Year Activities to Do at Home or in the Classroom

10 Best Chinese Children's Books to Celebrate Chinese New Year

Best Chinese New Year Short Videos and Songs for Children