October, 2006

Time: 15 mins.
ELEMENTARY GROUP
Pop-Quiz 104
Reading (Seen Text)

CHINESE NEW YEAR

1 Chinese people all over the world celebrate the Lunar New Year, which falls between mid-January
and mid-February. The celebration can last for 15 days. The traditions of this holiday are very old
and come from a story about a monster, called Nihn or Nien. The monster would hunt and eat at
the end of each year. The Chinese tried to protect themselves when he was looking for food. They
found out that the monster was afraid of fire, loud noises and the color red, so they lit many
candles and lanterns. They beat their drums or gongs, exploded bamboo firecrackers and painted
many things with bright red paint or dye.

2 Modern celebrations of Chinese New Year include firecrackers and fireworks displays that begin
on New Year's Eve. People think that these frighten away evil spirits. The preparations for the
festival begin the day before, when people clean and scrub their homes, throw away old clothes,
and pay old bills. They never do the sweeping on New Year's Day because they believe that this
will sweep or wash away good luck.

3 The Lunar New Year marks the beginning of the Year of the Dragon. There are twelve animal
symbols used to name the years, and Chinese horoscopes or predictions of the future depend on
what year you were born in. The dragon is the symbol of the Emperor and represents harmony
and unity within a nation or country. In the Chinatowns of North America, the Chinese celebrate
the New Year with lion and dragon dances in the streets. The paper dragons can be as long as a
full city block. There is also the custom of giving red envelopes. They fill the red envelopes with
money and the older, married adults and bosses give them to children and young people. The red
is for good luck, and the money is a wish for prosperity.

A. What do the following refer to?

1. this holiday (para. 1) : _____________________________

2. They (para. 1) : _____________________________
3. these (para. 2) : _____________________________
4. them (para. 3) : _____________________________

B. Find words in the text that mean the following. Use ONE word only and DO NOT change the
form of the words.

1. continue (para. 1) (v) :___________________

2. cleaning (para. 2) (n) :___________________
C. Mark the following statements True or False.

T F 1. It was important for Chinese people to protect the monster Nihn.

T F 2. The Chinese horoscope has animal symbols for each month of the year.

T F 3. Chinese people believe that the Year of the Dragon will bring peace to China.

T F 4. Chinese paper dragons are usually very short and small.

D. Answer the following questions.

1. When is the Lunar New Year celebrated in China?

______________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________.
2. Why do Chinese people paint things bright red?
______________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________.
3. How do Chinese people prepare for the celebration of Chinese New Year?
______________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________.
4. What do people wish for others when they give them red envelopes with money?
______________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________.
ELEMENTARY GROUP
Pop-Quiz 104
ANSWER KEY

A.
1. (the) Lunar New Year
2. (The) Chinese (people)
3. firecrackers and fireworks (displays)
4. (the) (red) envelopes (with money)

B.
1. last
2. sweeping

C.
1. F 2. F 3. T 4. F

D.

1. (It is celebrated) between mid-January and mid-February

2. Because (they found out that) the monster was afraid of the color red

3. They clean (and scrub) their homes, throw away old clothes and pay old bills

4. They wish for good luck and prosperity