The biggest holiday for children in Vietnam is the Mid-Autumn Festival, which is also celebrated as Children's Day. The festival takes place at the time of the harvest moon, usually sometime in September or October. On the day of the festival, the children help their mothers make moon cakes, the special treats enjoyed by everyone on this holiday. The round cakes are made of sticky rice and filled with nuts, raisins and other fruits. Often local contests are held to see who can make the tastiest rice cakes. In the evening, children walk up and down the streets carrying lighted paper lanterns. Some of the lanterns are round and white like the moon, while others are brightly colored and fashioned into shapes such as fish, dragons, rabbits and boats. When the children hear the sound of the drums and cymbals, they know it is time for the dragon parades. Large and small dragons made of paper and cloth are carried through the streets by dancers. When the parades are over, the dancers celebrated by setting off hundreds of noisy firecrackers. Later in the evening the children and their families gather under the full moon for songfests. The lighted lanterns twinkle far into the night as everyone joins in singing favorite folksongs.
Festival Lanterns
Vietnamese children make colored paper lanterns in various shapes for Mid-Autumn Festival. To achieve a similar effect, let your children make pretend wax paper lanterns. For each child cut two lantern shapes (or fish or whatever) about 12 inches wide from waxed paper. Five the children small pieces of different colored tissue paper to glue on their shapes. When they have finished, staple the edges of each child's shapes together with a handful of lightly crumpled waxed paper scraps inside. Use a hole punch to make a hole at the top of the lantern and reinforce with holes with gummed reinforcement circles (or put scotch tape on the top and punch a hole through the tape and paper at the same time). Attach pieces of colored yarn to the lanterns and allow children to hang them in front of a sunny window.
Full Moon
Sung to: "Row, Row, Row Your Boat"
Full moon shining bright,
(Flutters fingers downward.)
Shining in the night.
What a lovely face you have,
(Holding arms in a circle above head.)
Big and round and white.
Fruit Bread Moon Cakes
Let your children help make banana bread or any other bread that contains fruit and nuts. Bake the bread in well-greased soup or vegetable cans. Then slice the bread into rounds and let the children spread on fruit flavored cream cheese.
How do you incorporate culture into your program? Have your kids celebrated Mid Autumn Moon Festival? Let me know!
