This month we read the book A Grain of Rice.  This story is a mathematical folktale in which a poor young man requests to marry the daughter of the Chinese emperor.  The emperor refuses his initial request but grants him a job in the palace.  The young man proves himself as a good steward the the emperor wishes to reward him.  The boy requests a grain of rice and asks that his amount of rice be doubled every day.  Soon the emperor realizes that he has been outwitted and he grants permission for his daughter to wed the clever and now wealthy young man.

To celebrate this Chinese folktale Curly practiced drawing dragons and we created dragon artwork.  There are several tutorials on how to draw a Chinese dragon here and here. 

We also created our own Chinese lanterns.

You need:
popsicle sticks
hot glue gun
double sided tape
wrapping paper
crepe paper
scissors
yarn or string

1) Take 4 popsicle sticks and hot glue the ends together to make a square, lining up the corners evenly.
2) Do another set of 4 popsicle sticks.

3) Cut a piece of wrapping paper long enough to fold all the way around your popsicle stick square.
4) Once the sticks are dry and cooled, put double sided tape on the edges of the sticks and line up each square at one end of your wrapping paper.  You want each square about half an inch from the edge of your paper.
5) Carefully roll the sticks so that the paper is folded around the square shapes.  Secure the end with tape.

6) Cut the crepe paper into fringe and glue it to the outside of your lantern.
7) Hot glue some string the to the popsicle sticks on the inside of your lantern for hanging.

Here’s a unit study from Layers of Learning and some ideas for making a China notebook from Walking by the Way.

Here are some other Chinese folktales to enjoy!

Poppins Book Nook Giveaway! Every month the Poppins Book Nook group will be offering readers a chance to win a brand new storybook or product that ties in with our theme for the month. This month one lucky entrant will win a copy of the E.H.M. curriculum Journey into the World of Folktales  (PDF) and one copy of the book that is required to teach it called Around the World in 80 Tales by Saviour Pirotta to further their learning all about folktales.

Entrants must be 18years or older and reside in a country that receives U.S. Postal mail. This giveaway is brought to you by the company Enchanted Homeschooling Mom who is owner and founder of the Poppins Book Nook. By entering this giveaway you are also acknowledging that you have read and agree to all of the Rafflecopter terms& conditions as well as Enchanted Homeschooling Mom’s disclosures found here.  Just enter the Rafflecopter below to win:

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