Pyrena Hui and Oscar Tang, owners of a large family child care home in San Francisco, are the first generation of their family to emigrate from Hong Kong. Their parents and some siblings remain in Hong Kong, where February marks the beginning of Spring and the Lunar New Year, a two-week celebration of family, feasting, and fortune. Pyrena and Oscar honor and share the Lunar New Year holiday with the children and families in their child care through a variety of activities including calligraphy, cooking, special costumes, and—this Year of the Snake—learning to grow new skills and habits, just as the snake grows a new skin. (Lunar New Year is a more inclusive term for what many know as “Chinese New Year;” Lunar New Year is celebrated in many East and Southeast Asian countries and in Asian diaspora communities across the world.)
“Celebrating Lunar New Year reminds us who we are and the roots that we grow from,” says Oscar. “Even though we are in the United States now, and that is a transition, the story of our family and culture continues, and that is important.” Learning about and honoring cultural roots and offshoots is also fun for the 14 children, ages 6 months to 5 years, in their program. “In addition to Cantonese and Mandarin, the families we serve speak Spanish, Romanian, Korean, French, and Bengali,” says Pyrena. “All of them love the Lunar New Year activities, and we also celebrate holiday traditions from their cultures, too.”
Grace Yang, the lead teacher at Bay Sky Montessori in Oakland, California, also celebrates Lunar New Year with children in her program. “We create activities that fit into our Montessori curriculum, which practices fine motor skills, sensory needs, oral conversation, math.” Many of the 14 children in her program have at least one Chinese grandparent, but parents speak English at home, so this is a way to connect with their heritage and also grow their skills.
For example, children draw or paint the Chinese characters for blessings of good fortune, which improves their fine motor skills, and they enjoy putting their words up on the door along with flowers, tangerines, and other symbols of spring and good fortune. Because 2025 is the Year of the Snake on the Chinese zodiac calendar, children are also reading many books about snakes and drawing their own wiggly snake lines.
Both Pyrena and Grace note that although many adults are afraid of snakes, children love them. “We always want to present the positive nature of snakes through books and in person.” Pyrena took her students to a nature center where students were able to see and touch snakes up close. Grace shares a book about a baby snake that grows to be a wise leader and a clever, loyal friend. The snake symbolizes change and growth because it regularly sheds its old skin and grows a new, shiny sheath.
Every day, family child care providers teach and support children to lean into their best selves by shedding bad habits and growing new skills and positive behaviors. Pyrena says, “Children need lots of social emotional support. They need to feel safe, be able to make friends, be able to self-regulate those big emotions. These are the things that get them ready for school, in addition to the academic skills. So we do yoga, we do meditation, and do tons of water play that helps them to calm down and self-regulate. This year, I’m going to bring plastic snakes for the water table. Because snakes might look scary, but they can be very lovely too.”
Both Pyrena and Grace are eager to share children’s learning and growth with families. Their Lunar New Year celebrations include a gathering with parents to eat traditional foods like fish and sweet rice balls, followed by a parade through the neighborhood, with children dressed in costumes of red and gold, playing drums and music, and doing the lion dance. Sharing Lunar New Year with families and neighbors instills both joy and pride in children, bringing good fortune to the entire community. It’s an opportunity to practice and celebrate new skills, growth, and hope for a blossoming new season in nature and children’s developmental journey.
农历新年快乐 Nónglì xīnnián kuàilè
