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How to use Chopsticks

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How to Hold & Use Chopsticks the Right Way!

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SUBSCRIBE TO YING & YANG LIVING: http://bit.ly/NgkdzZ VISIT WEBSITE: http://www.yingandyangliving.com/ Have you ever been in an Asian restaurant and requested a fork because you didn't know how to hold chopsticks? I show you how to hold and use your chopsticks the right way! http://www.yingandyangliving.com/videos/hold-chopsticks/

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Schools in China

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School in China | News For Kids, By Kids | Scholastic.com

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In many ways, schools in China are much like schools in America. The campuses are much smaller and the number of students per teacher much higher, but the schools have playgrounds with basketball courts as well as track and field. But they are also surrounded by steel fences with a security gate.

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Chinese Traditions

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Chinese Family Culture and Traditions Project Video

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A child's life in China

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Meet Zhu Kun whose parents grow bonsai in the mountains around their village. Visit an open market with Kun's mother and watch her prepare a meal for her family and Kun's grandparents. Next, meet Yu Qinbo and her family who live in Ningbo, a port city in China.

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Pandas

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Great Wall of China

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Chinese Culture for kids

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Children are children, no matter the culture.

While China is roughly the same size as the United States in land mass, it is home to nearly 1.5 billion people with a unique and intricate culture that dates back centuries. As our world becomes smaller, how others live - how they are like us and how they are different - becomes increasingly relevant information for our children.

Chinese Food

Cutting noodles would mean cutting short your luck.

Food plays an important role for Chinese families. Different foods have special meanings, and it's important who does the serving. The most obvious difference, though, is that people eat their meals with chopsticks.

China's size means that traditional food varies depending on its origin. Sichuan comes from west China, while Cantonese comes from the south. Hunan food is from central China, Beijing from the northeast and Fujiang from the southeast.

Chinese New Year

Children traditionally receive money on New Year's for wealth in the coming year.

The Chinese calendar is based on the cycles of the moon - it's called a lunar calendar - and is not the same as the one used in the United States. New Year's is in late winter, and it involves an elaborate celebration of ushering out the old and bringing in the new, complete with special foods, symbols and traditions. For instance, sweeping the floor before New Year's Day sweeps away all the old year's bad luck.

Chinese Zodiac

The Year of the Rabbit began in 2011.

Just as the Chinese calendar is different, so is the way they name and track years. The Chinese zodiac follows a 12-year cycle, with each year named for a specific animal. For instance, the year that began in 2010 was the year of the Tiger.

Like the symbols of the Roman and Greek zodiacs, the animals in the Chinese zodiac are thought to bestow certain characteristics to people born during specific years.

Chinese Language and Writing

Chinese calligraphy is traditionally done with brushes.

Chinese is a complex language of nuance, with the precise pronunciation of a word or phrase key to its meaning. In addition to Standard, or Mandarin, Chinese, natives speak six other forms of the language, and there are myriad dialects.

Written Chinese is a centuries-old form of calligraphy. Unlike languages that use an alphabet to form words out of single letters, written Chinese uses single symbols to mean whole words.

Photo Credits

Jupiterimages/Goodshoot/Getty Images

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Facts About Chinese Culture for Kids | Synonym

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Children are children, no matter the culture. While China is roughly the same size as the United States in land mass, it is home to nearly 1.5 billion people with a unique and intricate culture that dates back centuries.

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Ancient China

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China Family Adventure

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Here is a compilation of interesting China Facts which should give you a brief introduction to this fascinating country.

Whether you are researching a bit about China for a school project or just want to learn more about the land and its people, these pages will get you started.

Please feel free to let us know if there is a particular aspect you would like to see covered.

We will be adding periodically to this section, so please check back often for any new material.

So, let's begin! First some quick figures and facts about the country and then we will dwell more into the life and the people of China, the Chinese economy, geographic features, and wildlife and nature.

The People's Republic of China

Name:The official name of the country is The People's Republic of China.

The Chinese name is "Zhong Guo", which means the "Middle Kingdom". Since ancient times, it was believed that China was at the center of the universe.

Capital: China's capital city is Beijing.

Population: China is the world's most populous country. There are 1.38 billion people in China, that is more than twice the number of people in Europe (excluding Russia) and over a billion more than in the United States.

Area: 9.5 million square kilometers or 3.7 million square miles. Located in the Asian continent, China is the fourth largest country, after Russia, Canada and the United States.

Language: Chinese is the most widely spoken language in the world. Although there are thousands of Chinese dialects spoken, China's official language is Mandarin Chinese, that is, this is the dialect that is taught in school and the dialect used for national radio and tv broadcasts.

Religion: Although there is no "official" religion in China, there are a number of religions and spiritual followings practiced by Chinese. The most widely practiced religions are Buddhism and Taoism. At the same time, the teachings of Confucius, although not an "organized religion" per se, have became the basis for Chinese family and moral life throughouth the country.

Government: China is a socialist republic ruled by a single party, the Communist Party of China. The People's Republic of China was established on October 1, 1949. China's President and General Secretary of the Communist Party is Xi Jinping.

China Flag

The current China Flag was adopted soon after the Communist regime came to power.

It has five yellow stars on a red background.

What does the Red Background mean? The red background symbolizes the revolution and the blood of those who died during the civil war and the Japanese invasion.

What do the Golden Stars stand for? There are Five yellow stars, a large one that represents the Communist Party and the four smaller ones that surround it represent the four different classes of society.

Here's more China Facts on the modern China Flag and its meaning.

China Geography

China's Geography and landscape are extremely varied. It is a large country, just slightly smaller than the United States, with a great variety of environments, peoples, flora and fauna, and traditions.

Along the coast concentrate the main cities and ports. In the North and West are mountains and deserts. The South is crowded with jungles and tropical lowlands whereas the South-West is home to the harsher Tibetan Plateau.

The majority of the people live in the milder coastal areas and along the rivers. These areas are booming modern economic and industrial zones which are in high contrast to the poorer areas as you travel inland.

China Geography Facts

People and Life in China

People born in China with at least one parent of Chinese descent is considered a Chinese national.

As with many large countries, in China there are many ethnic groups that make up the population, however, the great majority of the people and what you would typically recognize as "Chinese", roughly 93%, are from the Han Chinese group.

Being such a diverse land, you will find that lifestyles and customs in China vary greatly. When you visit China, you are first aware of a country dealing with a rapid pace of modernization and at the same time a country that is struggling to maintain its traditions and heritage of thousands of years.

China Economy

In 2014, China became the world's largest economy according to the CIA World Fact Book, closely followed by the European Union and the United States.

The rapid ascent of China started in the late '70s with the introduction of a series of reforms that replaced the closed economy under state socialism with a more capitalist and market-oriented system, what has been dubbed "Socialism with Chinese Characteristics", turning China into one of the world's largest and fastest growing economies. What's behind this meteoric rise? What are the challenges they face?

Due to the sheer size of its economy, everything that happens in China affects many other nations. In the following articles we give you an introduction to China's economic forces and how they are shaping the future of the country and the world.

Other General China Facts

Let's Celebrate!

You can decorate easily with traditional or battery-operated lanterns, paper cuttings, lucky coins and banners to add a splash to the celebrations!

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China Facts which should give you a brief introduction to this fascinating country. Whether you are researching a bit about China for a school project or just want to learn more about the land and its people, these pages will get you started.

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Travel to China

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Here are some interesting China Facts which were chosen and researched by kids especially for kids.

China Facts for Kids

Population: more than 1.423 billion people live in China (2023). The majority of the people live in cities and towns.

Capital: Beijing with 21 million inhabitants is not only China's capital city but also the second biggest city after Shanghai.

Name: People's Republic of China (PRC)

Government: Republic, communist state

Languages: Mandarin or Standard Chinese (official language), while Cantonese (Yue) and Shanghainese (Wu) are among other most spoken languages

Literacy: More than 96% can read and write.

Religion: No main religion, as religious memberships are not supported by the government. Main religions are Buddhist (18%), Christian 5%, Muslim 1.8%, Taoist, Hindu and Folk Religions (22%)

Flag colors: red with five golden stars

National day: 1 October - in 1949 the People's Republic of China was formed

National symbols: dragon and giant panda

National colours: red and yellow

National anthem: 'March of the Volunteers'

History: For many centuries, China has been one of the most advanced civilisations accomplishing major scientific and artistic treasures. The Xia and Shang dynasties are considered as the oldest Chinese civilisations. Over the centuries many emporors ruled the country, the last emperor of China, the last ruler of the Qing dynasty, was Pu Yi who abdicted in 1912. In the 20th century the world was shaken by bloody wars and from 1937-1945 Japan occupied large industrial areas in China and took over the Chinese government. Since 1949 the Communist Party of China rules the country. The president of the People's Republic of China is Xi Jinping - since 2013.

Where is China? - China Map

China is located in the eastern parts of Asia and is the largest country that is entirely situated in Asia.

Chinaborders 14 countries.The countries bordering China are: Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar (formerly called Burma), Laos, Vietnam and North Korea (you will find them on the map below).

China has 23 provinces including the island of Taiwan.

(Please note: Taiwan is an independent country and has its own currency and government. Taiwan is officially called "Republic of China", but not part of China, however, China sees Taiwan as part of the country and as a rebel province as Taiwan is not recognised as a sovereign state by the UN.)

There are also two SARs, which are Special Administrative Regions, that have some autonomy: Hong Kong and Macau in southern China.

China for Kids | China Geography

China is the fourth largest country in the world after Russia, Canada and the USA.

Although China is so large, there is only one timezone!

Most people in China live in the eastern parts of the country, the western parts are only sparsely populated.

The Pacific Ocean forms the natural border in the east and southeast and southwest of the country. In the west, there are the Himalayas, which is the highest mountain range in the world.

Most of the western parts of the country lie on the Tibetan mountainous plateau. In fact, mountains make up the majority of the landscape, dominating over 70% of the landmass.

The huge country has many different climate zones ranging from tropic zones to arctic zones.

In the north, there is the vast Gobi Desert. Deserts make up about 20% of the country.

China Facts | China Superlatives

China is the second most populous country in the world as it is home to almost one fifth of the world population.

The highest mountain on the border with China is the Mount Everest, the world's highest mountains, with 8,848 metres (29,000ft).

The longest river in China is the Yangtze River with over 6,300km (3,914miles) in length. This is also Asia's longest river.

China has the world's longest sea-crossing bridge. The Hongkong to Zhuhai-Macao bridge was opened to traffic in October 2018.

The Gobi Desert which stretches over China and Mongolia is the largest desert in Asia.

China Facts
Attractions for Kids

Great Wall of China: Walk along parts of the over 8,850 km/ 5,500 miles long Great Wall which once was the border of the old Chinese empire. The wall stretches across China from the Korean border into the Gobi desert. This is the longest wall in the world and newer archeological findings report that the entire defence works including the Great Wall and all its branches stretches over 21,000 km/ 13,000 miles! Did you know, that the name in ancient Chinese actually meant 'The 10,000-Mile Long Wall' or 'Incredibly Long Wall'?

Terracotta Warriors: See the over 5000 sculptures of life-size soldiers, made from terracotta, in Xian. The sculptures which are on one of the world's most famous archeological sites, are older than 2,000 years.

Forbidden City in Beijing: The Forbidden City houses the Palace museum with the Chinese Imperial Palace and the Summer Palace, that were still used until 1911.

Potala Palace in Lhasa/Tibet: This is where every Dalai Lama has held his official residence until the Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1950

Wolong Giant Panda Nature Reserve near Chengdu: See the pandas in their natural habitat and visit the breeding and research centre to learn more about the endangered pandas.

Guilin: The rough limestone karst mountains along the Li River between Guilin and Yangshuo are very picturesque. People enjoy rafting on river.

'The Bund' in Shanghai: Shanghai is the largest and most populated Chinese city with the busiest port in the world. The Bund is the megacity's main shopping and business district.

Hong Kong: Visit Victoria Harbour. Enjoy the amazing views of the skyscrapers along the shoreline or get to the top of Victoria Peak and have a bird's eye view of the city and the harbour.

Read more about awesome China family attractions and Chinese landmarks here: Landmarks in China
China Facts | Chinese People

Almost one in five people on our earth live in China, while the country is smaller than the USA. The Chinese government lifted the one-child policy in 2016, now Chinese parents are allowed to have two children.

China surpassed India in population numbers in April 2023.

Many Chinese live in the 'megacities' of the country. Megacities are cities with more than 10 million inhabitants. Six of the 33 megacities in the world are located in China.

In rural areas the living standard is still very poor and many people live there live in huts or along the rivers in stilt houses.

The Chinese love music and opera plays, although the voices of the Chinese opera singers may sound strange to our ears.

Chinese New Year, also called the Lunar New Year, is the biggest celebration on the Chinese calendar. The Chinese calendar start at the end of January/early February each year and every year another animal sign symbolises the strength and the weaknesses. There are 12 zodiac/animal signs and thus every 12 years the animals signs start over again. 2023 is the Year of the Rabbit. Read more here. 2024 will be the Year of the Dragon.

Children look very much forward to the Chinese New Year celebrations which are two weeks long celebrations over the new year when they get gifts, often money wrapped in red envelopes or red packets, from family and friends. Popular 'Lion Dances' also take place during this time. The dragon is the most celebrated symbol of prosperity and strength.
Which zodiac sign are you? Read more about the Chinese New Year celebrations here.

China Facts | Chinese Language

Although Mandarin Chinese is the official language, in many regions other languages are spoken such as Cantonese, Shanghainese, Hainanese or Mongolian.

The Chinese writing is done from top to bottom in little symbols or signs, called 'characters' of which an adult usually knows about 8,000 different characters. With 13 years most Chinese children can read and write 3,000 characters.

Some Chinese words good to know:

Ni hao! means Hello!

Xie Xie means Thank You

Gong Xi Fa Cai means Happy Chinese New Year

China Facts | Chinese Food

The traditional diet in China contains low amounts of protein such as meats or dairy products. Many Chinese dishes are vegetable and soya based. Chinese often eat/drink soup for breakfast and rice based dishes are eaten throughout the day.

Soy, vegetable and rice products are the most common ingrediences in Chinese dishes. Chinese mainly eat with chopsticks and drink their soups instead of eating them with a spoon as we do. Here is some typical Chinese food:

Springrolls: The fried rice paper rolls are surely the most famous food export

Chow Mein: stir-fried egg noodles with chicken strips

Tofu: soy bean curd used in many dishes

Sweet and sour pork: fried cubed pork and fried vegetables in a sweet and sour sauce often made with capsicum peppers and pineapple

Peking Duck: duck roast with crispy thin skin, often served with plum sauce

Dim Sum: Steamed dumplings filled with minced meat or vegetables
Read more about Chinese Food on our new special page here: Food in China
China Facts | China Animals
Read more about endangered animals in China on our special page here: Animals in China
There are many endangered animal species living in China. Among them are the Giant Panda, the South Chinese Tiger and the Chinese Alligator.

China economy

China is part of the BRICS countries - together with Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa. China is already considered a world superpower by many. China's economic strength rivals that of the USA and the USA.

The country is rich in natural resources and the top producer of aluminium and iron ore, cobalt, graphite and processed copper among other minerals.

The huge Asian country is also the world's top producer of rice and beer!

The main trading partners are the USA, Japan, Australia and Germany.

Popular Pages

China Facts | Resources

Central Intelligence Agency. "China" CIAWorldFactBook. Last updated 15 August 2023. Last accessed 23 August 2023

BBC News. "World's longest sea crossing". BBC. 23 October 2018. Last accessed 23 August 2023

Maggie Hiufu Wong. "China's Top Megacities". CNN World. Updated 6 March 2019. Accessed 23 August 2023

Miriam Hoffmann. "China Family Adventure". Last accessed 2 February 2022. Great resources to learn more about China can be found on this site. The informative and well laid out website is written and maintained by a Chinese expat and her children and gives comprehensive information and important China facts.

China Highlights. Another good site for China facts and information the main attractions of China is this one. Click here. Last accessed 23 August 2023

View some great images of the Great Wall on the page of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre here. Last accessed 23 August 2023

Also find good info on TravelChinaGuide on the Great Wall here. Last accessed 23 August 2023

Return from China Facts to Kids-World-Travel-Guide Homepage
Feel free to contact us if you or your school would like to join in our schools project. Looking forward to hearing from u! And enjoy learning more great China Facts soon:-)

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China Facts for Kids | China for Kids | Geography | Attractions

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Our China Facts for Kids will provide you with country facts, information on people and culture about China for kids

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Facts about China

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Dragon dances have been performed in China for over 2,000 years and are believed to bring about good fortune.

OFFICIAL NAME: People's Republic of China

FORM OF GOVERNMENT: Communist state

CAPITAL: Beijing (Peking)

POPULATION: 1,397,897,720

OFFICIAL LANGUAGES: Standard Chinese, Mandarin

MONEY: Yuan (or renminbi)

AREA: 3,705,405 square miles (9,596,960 square kilometers)

MAJOR MOUNTAIN RANGES: Himalaya

MAJOR RIVERS: Yangtze, Yellow

Stretching 3,100 miles (5,000 kilometers) from east to west and 3,400 miles (5,500 kilometers) from north to south, China is a large country with widely varying landscapes. Its territory includes mountains, high plateaus, sandy deserts, and dense forests.

One-third of China's land area is made up of mountains. The tallest mountain on Earth, Mount Everest, sits on the border between China and Nepal.

China has thousands of rivers. The Yangtze and the Yellow Rivers are the most important. At 3,915 miles (6,300 kilometers) long, the Yangtze is the world's third largest river.
Map created by National Geographic Maps

PEOPLE & CULTURE

With a population of 1.4 billion, China has more people than any other country on Earth. About a third of the population lives in cities. The rest of the people live in the country.

Arts and crafts have a long history in China. Thousands of years ago the Chinese were some of the first people to use silk, jade, bronze, wood, and paper to make art. The artistic writing called calligraphy was invented in China.

Much of China's modern beliefs and philosophies are based on the teachings of a government official who lived nearly 3,000 years ago. Kongfuzi, also known as Confucius, taught people the value of such things as morality, kindness, and education.

China's diverse habitats are home to hundreds of species of animals and plants. More than 3,800 species of fish and hundreds of amphibians and reptile species live in the rivers, lakes, and coastal waters.

China's forest wildlife is threatened by logging and clear-cutting (clearing the land of all trees) for farmland. Expanding deserts in the north also shrink animal habitats. The Chinese government has created more than 1,200 reserves to protect plant and animal species.

The giant panda lives in the misty mountains of southwest China and nowhere else on Earth. They eat bamboo and usually live near stands of the woody evergreen plant. Pandas have been hunted and only about 1,600 remain in the wild.

GOVERNMENT & ECONOMY

China is an authoritarian state ruled by a very powerful central government. A huge workforce and lots of natural resources have driven economic change. This has forced the communist government to permit more economic and personal freedoms, but it has come at a huge cost to the environment.

Many experts predict that the 21st century will be the "Chinese century." Whether or not that proves to be true, there is no doubt that what happens in China will affect many other nations.

China is the home of one of the world's oldest civilizations, but it has only recently become a "modern" nation. In the last 20 years, China has changed faster than any other country in the world.

Chinese history is divided into dynasties, each of which marks the period when a line of emperors ruled. The first empire was the Qin dynasty and began in 221 B.C. The last emperor was overthrown in 1912, and China became a republic. The communist government began its rule in 1949 following a civil war with the Chinese Nationalists.

Ancient China was a land of invention. For centuries, China was way ahead of most other countries in science and technology, astronomy, and math. The Chinese invented paper, the magnetic compass, printing, porcelain, silk, and gunpowder, among other things.

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China Country Profile - National Geographic Kids

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Dragon dances have been performed in China for over 2,000 years and are believed to bring about good fortune.

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Learn to speak Chinese

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Confucius Fun Facts for Kids (All You Need to Know!)

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All About Who Was Confucius - Visit our FREE Fun Science Website and learn facts all about who was Confucius. FREE Biographies and Facts on Science for Kids

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Chinese New Year video

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Why the Rat Comes First: A Lunar New Year Story

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Watch an exciting lunar new year story about a race that determined the order of the Chinese zodiac.

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Here you can find out about all about Chinese New Year. Discover Chinese customs, traditions and the Chinese Zodiac. You can find out your Zodiac animal, watch our videos and try our activities.

Find out what Chinese New Year is about, its importance as a festival in China and when it is celebrated. Here we explain how the timing of this festival is based on the phases of the moon known as the Lunar calendar.

Learn more about Chinese New Year

One in every six people in the world celebrate Chinese New Year. Customs vary in different parts of the world but everywhere the main idea is to remember family and wish everyone peace and prosperity in the coming year.

Learn about the celebrations

The Chinese zodiac follows a twelve year cycle, each of the years being named after an animal.

Learn about the Chinese Zodiac Animals

Chinese Dragon maths game is an ordering and sequencing numbers game based on the Chinese New Year dragon theme. It's suitable for 5-11 year olds.

Play Chinese Dragon Game now

Enjoy the Chinese New Year celebrations with our jigsaw puzzles for 4-9 year olds. There are four pictures to choose from and you can work with either 9, 16 or 25 pieces.

Play Chinese New Year Jigsaws now

To mark the Chinese New Year of the Rabbit, you can follow our free guide to make a simple Rabbit puppet.

Make a Rabbit Puppet

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Here you can find out about all about Chinese New Year. Discover Chinese customs, traditions and the Chinese Zodiac. You can find out your Zodiac animal, watch our videos and try our activities. Find out what Chinese New Year is about, its importance as a festival in China and when it is celebrated.

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Games about China

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DK Find Out about China

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DK Find Out! | Fun Facts for Kids on Animals, Earth, History and more!

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Visit DK Find Out! to learn about dinosaurs, space, animals, nature & more. Fun learning activities for kids with videos, quizzes & galleries at DKFindOut.com