Chinese New Year Dragon Puppet
The Chinese New Year dragon is one of the most magnificent symbols of the holiday — a colorful, serpentine creature that dances through streets to bring good luck. Making a simple dragon puppet from paper plates and paint lets children join the celebration with their own handmade parade dragon.
What You'll Need
- Paper plates — 8–10 for a long dragon
- Red and gold paint — the traditional New Year colors
- Glue, staples, or brads — to connect the plates in a chain
- Streamer ribbon — red and gold, for the body between plates
- Craft paper — for the dragon head features
- Googly eyes — big, dramatic ones
How to Do It
Step 1: Paint the plates. Paint all plates in red and gold. Let dry.
Step 2: Connect in a chain. Connect plates in a line using brads (paper fasteners) through the edges so the chain is flexible.
Step 3: Decorate the head plate. On the first plate, add big googly eyes, painted teeth, paper nostrils, and paper horns.
Step 4: Add ribbon streamers. Attach red and gold streamers between each plate as the dragon's body.
Step 5: Parade! Hold the head plate and let the body stream behind as you dance!
🎓 Skills Your Child Will Develop
Cultural awareness — Learning about Chinese New Year traditions builds global cultural literacy.
Cooperative performance — Multi-child dragon puppets require coordination and shared movement.
Tips & Variations
- Make a 20-plate dragon for a whole class to animate together — each child holds two plates.
- Add gold coin decorations to the body.
My Two Cents
The flexible connection between plates is key — brads work much better than glue or staples because they allow the dragon to serpentine. Practice the parade movement before the celebration so children feel confident with their dragon.
