[January Childcare] Traditional New Year’s Games! A Collection of Ideas to Enjoy with Children
Are you wondering what kinds of activities to include in childcare in January? January is a perfect time for children to get familiar with Japanese culture through traditional games and seasonal recreation.
Here, we introduce New Year’s themed play ideas such as invisible-ink drawings (aburidashi), lion dance (shishimai), and shell matching (kai-awase).
Traditional games are full of elements that nurture children’s creativity and concentration.
They offer many ways to play—moving their bodies with friends, using their hands to make things, and more.
These ideas are also perfect for events in childcare settings, so please use them as a reference!
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[January Childcare] Traditional New Year’s Games! A Collection of Fun Ideas to Enjoy with Children (31–40)
New Year’s games that infants and toddlers can enjoy!
Let me introduce some New Year’s activities that infants can enjoy.
First up is the shishi-mai lion dance! It’s said that having the lion lightly bite your head drives away evil spirits.
Children might feel scared, but gently reassure them by saying, “It’s not scary—something good will happen,” and encourage them to give it a try.
Next are traditional New Year’s games like spinning tops, kite flying, and fukuwarai (a face-building game).
There are plenty of great ideas, such as kites made from plastic bags, tops with longer spindles that are easier to spin, and fukuwarai themed around characters infants love.
A spinning top you can make and play with!
Let’s make a spinning top for New Year’s games using scrap materials.
First, make cuts at the corners of an empty milk carton and open it out so the sides lie flat.
Then cut the side panels at a point 10 centimeters up from the bottom rim.
Trim the corners to make them rounded.
After decorating the milk carton by drawing pictures or adding stickers, glue a plastic bottle cap at the center on the front, and attach a piece of straw (cut to 5–10 millimeters) to the center on the back.
Your top is now complete—pinch the cap and give it a spin!
Let’s make a Fukuwarai and play!
How about enjoying a classic New Year’s game, fukuwarai? Have the children draw and make the base sheet and facial parts however they like using construction paper and crayons.
By creating them themselves, the kids can grasp what the finished face should look like, and after playing fukuwarai they won’t be able to stop laughing! It might be even funnier if you make it as a self-portrait.
It’s perfectly fine if the fukuwarai face doesn’t turn out “well,” so why not encourage the kids by saying, “Make a funny face on purpose!”
Daruma-otoshi
Daruma Otoshi is a traditional game that teachers and children can enjoy together during the New Year.
Just watching the careful removal of the stacked blocks is exciting.
As a basic tip for playing, you should swing the mallet horizontally and pay attention to the speed and strength of your strikes.
The cheers that erupt when you remove the final block without toppling the daruma bring smiles and excitement to the nursery school as it welcomes the New Year.
By working together, everyone can share a sense of accomplishment, creating wonderful memories that brighten the start of the new term.
It’s also a good idea to choose a high-quality set so it can be cherished and used for a long time.
karuta (traditional Japanese playing cards)
Karuta, which is said to have been introduced from Portugal, is also widely known as a New Year’s game.
The rules are simple: lay out the grabbing cards, each printed with a single syllable of the Japanese syllabary, then be the first to grab the card that matches the reading card that’s called out.
The player who collects the most cards wins.
It also helps children learn characters, so it’s perfect for January activities! It can be fun for teachers to compete with children, or to hold team matches at nursery schools and kindergartens.
Prepare karuta sets that children will enjoy, such as regional traditional karuta, dialect karuta, or even handmade karuta created by the kids.
[January Childcare] Traditional New Year’s Games! A Collection of Fun Ideas to Enjoy with Children (41–50)
kite flying
Kite flying is said to have originated in China and is believed to have been introduced to Japan by the Heian period.
In recent years, the custom of flying kites at New Year has declined, but why not try making your own kites with your family, nursery, or kindergarten and have some fun? These are kites you can fly indoors as well as outside.
The charm is that they’re easy to make with familiar items like A4 paper, plastic bags, and straws! You can also customize them by adding tails or drawing pictures.
Once they lift gently into the air, the kids are sure to get excited!
Fingerplay song, um, the zodiac
As a January activity you can easily incorporate into childcare settings, we recommend a fingerplay song themed around the Chinese zodiac! The zodiac originated in ancient China.
Since it features many animals, children can enjoy learning about it.
The highlight of this fingerplay is that it includes imitations of the sounds made by all 12 animals! You can also sing while mimicking each animal, encouraging the children to copy along and get excited together.
For the final part, feel free to adapt it to suit the year or the occasion and have fun with it!