Northamptonshire school welcomes the dragon

With this weekend marking Chinese New Year, youngsters at Naseby Church of England Primary Academy – part of the Pathfinder Schools family - have been holding their own celebrations, with children from EYFS upwards getting into the festival spirit.

In keeping with Chinese customs, they decked the school red in a wonderful array of card and crepe crafts. Many pupils chose to make masks and others enjoyed creating and operating their own puppet dragons – this year’s zodiac sign – and had fun re-enacting the traditional dragon dance. Pupils practised how to write season’s greetings in Chinese script and enjoyed a music lesson, learning about the use of Chinese instruments in New Year ceremonies.

Chinese New Year has been celebrated in China for thousands of years, and is a time to worship ancestors, exorcise evil spirits and pray for good harvest.

In the Chinese zodiac, dragons are considered benevolent and wise, and those born under its sign are said to be charismatic, intelligent, confident, powerful and they are naturally lucky and gifted.

Louise Cook, Headteacher, Naseby Church of England Primary Academy, part of Pathfinder Schools, said: “We enrich our curriculum by celebrating and enjoying festivals from many cultures throughout the school year, and Chinese New Year is always a great favourite. During a stimulating and interactive week – which has involved music, movement, arts and crafts - the children have learnt a huge amount about Chinese culture. Their decorations look fantastic – who knew there were so many dragons living in Naseby!”