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New Year’s Day

Have children reflect on the previous year. Talk about what they did and what they might do differently in the
coming year. Make a list of resolutions. Point out that New Year’s Day is a day when God gives them a fresh
start.

Animals of the Chinese Zodiac

After completing this lesson, students will:

* know what a symbol is
* understand that the Chinese calendar is divided into cycles of 12-years, in which each year is represented by an animal
* be familiar with the story explaining the choice of the 12 zodiac animals
* understand that each animal of the calendar symbolizes certain character traits
* know that the Chinese associate the traits of each zodiac animal with people born in that year
* know their own signs within the Chinese zodiac

Best of the Icebreakers

Maybe you’ll find the perfect idea here for your first day of school. If not, be sure to check out more than 100 additional ideas that have been submitted over the years to our Icebreaker Activities Archive.

Icebreakers: Volume 10

Maybe you’ll have students trace their (right!) shoe, cut out the shoe shape, and write a personal goal for the year on it. Students then can decorate their shoes in unique ways, and you can display them on the bulletin board under the headline Starting the Year on the Right Foot!