Chinese Lion Dance Puppet Craft

Learn about China with this fun and easy Chinese Lion Dance puppet craft!

The Lion Dance, with its energetic movements, loud drums, and dazzling costumes, is a beloved and auspicious tradition in Chinese culture, often performed during festivals like Chinese New Year to bring good luck and chase away evil spirits.

Now, kids can capture a piece of that excitement and symbolism by creating their very own miniature lion puppet to bring this festive character to life!  

This craft is wonderfully simple, making it perfect for a hands-on activity when learning about China at home or in the classroom.

Using our free printable template, children get to unleash their creativity by coloring their lion with bright, festive colors.

After cutting out the pieces, they’ll assemble their creation onto a craft stick, transforming it into a fun puppet ready for imaginative play and learning more about Chinese traditions.

And at the bottom of this page you can also find some fun facts about the Lion Dance to talk about while you make your craft!

Chinese Lion Dance Puppet

Materials

• Chinese lion dance template
• Craft stick
• Markers
• Scissors
• Glue or tape

Instructions

Let’s get ready for some creative fun with this easy kids craft!

First, download and print out the Chinese lion dance craft template, which you can receive by entering your email into the form at the bottom of this page.

Now that you have our template, it’s time to decorate your lion! There are three different lion faces to choose from, so your child can select the one that they like the most. Color the template in vibrant colors of your choice.

Once your lion is colored, cut out the pieces of the template.

Fold down the tabs on the lion’s body and gently bend the body into a curve widthwise. Use the tabs to attach the lion’s body to the back of its head using glue or tape.

Use glue or tape to secure the craft stick to the back of the lion’s head underneath the lion’s back.

Now use glue or tape to attach the lion’s legs to the sides of it’s body.

Finally, fold the tab on the tail forward and use the tab to attach the lion’s cute tail to the back of its body.

And now your lion is complete!

These adorable puppets can be used to act out your own Lion Dance to celebrate the Chinese New Year or as part of a China learning unit at home or at school.

Interesting Facts About the Chinese Lion Dance

• Teamwork Makes the Dream Work: It usually takes two talented people working together inside the costume to make the lion move, jump, and dance! One person controls the head, and the other controls the body and tail.
• Scaring Away Monsters: People believe the loud noises from the drums and cymbals, along with the lion’s fierce look, scare away bad spirits and monsters (like the legendary Nian monster!).
• Bringing Good Luck: The Lion Dance is performed to bring good luck, happiness, and good fortune for the future, especially during Chinese New Year and other celebrations like store openings.
• Lions Can Blink and Wiggle! The lion head is cleverly made so the performers can make its eyes blink, ears wiggle, and mouth open and close, making it seem alive.
• Super Acrobatic: Lion dancers are often amazing acrobats! They make the lion jump high, balance on balls or poles, and do exciting tricks.
• It’s Super Loud! Lion dances are always accompanied by loud, rhythmic drumming, crashing cymbals, and banging gongs to add excitement and help scare away bad luck.
• Eating Lettuce for Luck: Sometimes the lion “eats” a head of lettuce (called cai qing) and then playfully spits out the leaves. This is a symbol of spreading wealth and good fortune.
• Colorful Lions: The lion costumes come in many bright colors like red, gold, green, and yellow, and the colors can sometimes represent different characters or meanings.
• An Ancient Tradition: The Lion Dance is a very old tradition in China, practiced for over a thousand years!