Many of us celebrate Lunar New Year with kids, but what about the Dragon Boat Festival? This popular holiday, eagerly anticipated by many around the world, is another meaningful and fun opportunity to engage and teach little ones about AANHPI heritage.
“The Dragon Boat Festival is one of the three most important Chinese traditional holidays,” says Dian Li, professor of Chinese studies at the University of Arizona in Tucson. “The other two major holidays are the Mid-Autumn Festival and the Lunar New Year Festival.”
What is the origin of the Dragon Boat Festival?
The Dragon Boat Festival occurs on the fifth day of the fifth month in the Chinese calendar, which is why it is also known as Double Fifth Festival. According to legend, the festival originated to honor a beloved poet in 300 BCE. “Qu Yuan was a [government] minister and a poet in the Kingdom of Chu,” explains Li. “Feeling disillusioned with his incompetent king, he drowned himself in the Miluo River. When the news spread, people rushed in by boats to rescue him while throwing sticky rice wrapped in bamboo leaves (called zongzi) to lure fish away from his body.”
Though the origin story is grim, the Dragon Boat Festival is a joyful celebration for families who gather all over the world “to commemorate the unyielding spirit of Qu Yuan.”
When is the Dragon Boat Festival 2023?
The lunar calendar date of the fifth day of the fifth month usually falls within late May to late June of the Gregorian calendar. In 2023, the Dragon Boat Festival will take place on June 22, but many celebrations in the U.S. take place throughout the late spring, summer and beyond.
What are the traditions of the Dragon Boat Festival?
Traditions for the Dragon Boat Festival can vary by region in China – we will highlight many of them below. The two most popular traditions are dragon boat racing and eating zongzi, a pyramid shaped sticky rice treat that can be made savory or sweet.
“The sport of dragon boat racing is one of the fastest growing team sports in the world,” says Henry Wan, the chairman of Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York, who says over 100 countries worldwide participate.
Wan loves this holiday because it is the most active of the major Chinese festivals. He explains that the sporting and cultural aspects of the celebration attracts diverse participants, which is why most major cities in the U.S. host an annual Dragon Boat Festival.
Creative ways to celebrate Dragon Boat Festival with kids
1. Make zongzi (sticky rice dumplings)
Making zongzi at home to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival is a quintessential custom of this holiday. “When I was about 6 years old, my grandmother taught me how to wrap a zongzi and I was very proud of myself,” says Cin Cin Tan, a mother of one in greater-Detroit who loves to teach her daughter about Chinese heritage.
After Tan moved to the U.S., she found herself longing for a taste of zongzi, prompting her and her husband to try to cook it together with their daughter. “I was surprised that I was able to wrap it myself, of course, with guidance from YouTube,” says Tan.
2. Watch dragon boat races
Ornate, brightly painted boats lined with 20 paddlers with a drummer at each helm gliding powerfully across the water is a spectacle to behold. “There are many dragon boat clubs in the country that anyone can join,” says Wan. “Some are for just the weekend warrior, others for year-round exercise.”
The Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York is one of the largest of its kind in the country and features an opening parade, cultural performances, such as kung fu and dance demonstrations, as well as traditional Chinese food.
Smaller dragon boat races and celebrations can be found across the country. Here are a few locations in 2023:
Look for one near you!
3. Learn how the Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated in different parts of China
This short video from National Geographic highlights beautiful, eye-opening footage from all around China on how dragon boat racing and zongzi making traditions differ across the Middle Kingdom.
4. Make bracelets out of colorful thread
The fifth month of the lunar calendar is believed to be bad luck, so many traditions around the Dragon Boat Festival revolve around protecting people from disease and pests. Parents tie threads of five colors around their children’s wrists and ankles to protect them from sickness. After the first summer rainfall, the children throw the thread into the river for further good luck. Simply choose five bright colors of thread to tie or braid together – or watch a how-to-video for inspiration.
5. Balance an egg at noon
If you can balance a raw egg at precisely noon on the day of the Dragon Boat Festival so that it can stand up vertically, good luck and harmony will be yours the rest of the year. There are egg-balancing competitions held at noon at many celebrations in China and around the world. Why not grab some eggs out of the fridge and try your luck at this no-preparation-required, fun activity?
6. Read about Double Fifth Celebrations
The book “Our Double Fifth Celebration” by Yobe Qiu highlights how the lunar calendar date of May 5th is celebrated in Japan and Korea, in addition to the Chinese Dragon Boat Festival customs.
7. Make a dragon boat craft
Bathtub or kiddie pool dragon boat races, anyone? So fun! Besides, the summer is the perfect time to get crafty. There are many how-to videos on making your own boats at home, like this dragon boat craft from Little Passports or this origami dragon boat tutorial. There’s even an adorable felt dragon boat fabric kit with googly eyes available along with many papercraft options.
8. Attend the Museum of Chinese in America Dragon Boat Family Festival
If you’re in the New York area, consider attending the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA) with the entire family for an afternoon of Dragon Boat Festival activities. The event takes place on June 24 from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. and includes arts and crafts, scavenger hunts and more.
9. Play games and learn about the five poisonous pests
Play a simple but exciting video game of a dragon boat (part of the MOCA Dragon Boat Family Festival virtual lineup from 2021) and catch lucky plants and herbs while avoiding the five poisonous pests, which arrive around the time of the festival. Then, read more about each of the five poisonous pests – scorpions, centipedes, spiders, lizards and toads – and learn how to make clay models of each.
10. Make herb sachets
During Dragon Boat Festival, kids wear herb sachets, also known as perfume pouches, to ward away evil and those pesky five pests. Making your own origami sachets is possible, but can be a bit complicated. Or opt to purchase the small sachets or mesh fabric and fill them with your favorite good-smelling herbs and dried flowers.
11. Short on time? Order a Dragon Boat Festival activity kit
Another option is to make it easy on yourself and take all the planning and prep work out of the holiday by ordering an activity kit, like this one from Days United. The Dragon Boat Festival celebration activities box includes all the materials and instructions needed for an artfully designed, detailed wood craft dragon boat project, a zongzi origami craft, a tool to help balance that egg at noon and a booklet full of background information on the holiday, including poetry by Qu Yuan.
Where to buy: Single Dragon Boat Festival box ($53, Days United)
