Japan's Children's Day

In Japan there is a Children's Day.

Flags and kites fly on that day.

There is one flag for every boy in the house.

The flags are like fish.

The wind blows them to make it look like they are swimming.

On the 5th day of the 5th month in Japan, Children's Day is celebrated. This festival used to be Boy's Day, but is now a holiday to celebrate all children being happy, and to say thank you to their mothers. However, for most people, 5th May is a day to pray for the health and happiness of their sons.

On this day, the sky is crowded with fish-shaped kites and flags called koi nobori. Koi means carp, a kind of fish. They are usually made of white cloth decorated in red or blue. This is because of an old legend about a carp fish that swims upstream and becomes a dragon.

When the wind blows the carp kites and flags it looks as if they are swimming.

Outside each house there is one carp flag for each son in the family. The biggest is for the oldest son.

Inside the houses, there are dolls dressed like soldiers of hundreds of years ago. This is because hundreds of years ago, it was important for boys to grow up to be strong and brave. There is special food to be eaten on this day: different kinds of rice cakes.

Girls in the family are guests of their brothers at a party, just as the boys are guests of the girls on Girls' Day, 3rd March.

For more information about Children's Day, go here:
http://web-japan.org/kidsweb/explore/calendar/may/children.html

Make a carp kite, a koi nobori:
http://aboutjapan.japansociety.org/content.cfm/childrens_day_craft_activity_koinobori
http://pbskids.org/zoom/activities/do/koinobori.html

This origami (paper folded) koi nobori is hard, but a grown up could help you do it !
http://origami-n-stuff4kids.blogspot.com/2009/04/origami-boys-day-carp-koi-nobori.html

Things to make for Children's Day:
http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/childrens_day_japan.htm

If you use any part of this in your own work, acknowledge the source in your bibliography like this:
Sydenham, S. & Thomas, R. Japan's Children's Day [online] www.kidcyber.com.au (2010)

Updated May 2010 ©kidcyber