Allison Branscombe - 17 Apr

All About

CHINA

Stories, Songs, Crafts and Games for Kids

ALLISON AIXIN BRANSCOMBE

Illustrated by

LIN WANG

Introducing China

Chinas Place in the World

W hen some people look at China on a map, they see a rooster, with the head to the northeast (upper right), and the vast areas of the southwest as the roosters wings, body, and tail. To the southeast, the roosters breast is the heart of China. Different climates around China result in big differences in how people live, what they eat and their daily activities.

Fast Facts

China was named the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) in 1949.

China is the worlds longest continuous civilization, lasting over 5,000 years. Many inventions we use today came from Chinalearn about them beginning on .

China has the worlds biggest population1.4 billion people. (India is second with 1.2 billion; the United States has only 310 million.) Counting Chinese people living outside of China, about one in four people in the entire world is Chinese.

China is a country on the continent of Asia. About half the worlds population are Asian.

All the worlds major religions are practiced in China, including Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, and Christianity. Only Taoism began in China, the others came from outside.

The highest and lowest points in the world are in China. Every ecosystem is in Chinaincluding lakes, glaciers, deserts, mountains, coral reefs, rivers, grassland, and tropical rainforests.

About half of Chinas people live in cities and half live in rural areas and villages.

Chinas many minority groups have different ways of dressing for special occasions. About 92 percent of Chinese people are from the Han ethnic group, and 8 percent are from 55 different minority groups, which contribute to Chinas wonderful diversity.

Chinas minority groups have many different ways of dressing. Look at the kids to the left. What do you notice? Can you describe the ways that their clothing is different?

A Tour of Chinas Famous Historic Places

Amazing Structures, Natural Wonders, and Sights

A Look At Chinas Geography

E veryone knows China produces rice, but did you know that China is the worlds biggest producer of cotton, tea, pork, wheat, and tobacco? Lots of farms raise ducks, and chickens too. Since most Chinese people do not have cows milk, cheese or beef, dairy farms are uncommon. Lots of electricity is produced by coal, water, and more recently, by solar and wind farms. China makes many more things than this map can show.

China is a land of contrasts. See if you can find all these regions: In the northwest are deserts, glaciers, and very tall mountains; in the northeast, there are more mountains and forests with bone-chilling winters. In the south and southeast are the fertile lowlands where China grows the food needed to feed its people and to trade with the rest of the world; in the southwest are the high mountain plateaus of the Tibetan region. Can you guess how much of Chinas land can actually be used for growing food? It is a very small amountonly 12 percent. Can you find where the melting snow of the Himalayas creates the Chang Jiang and Huang He rivers? They are the third and sixth longest rivers in the world.

Chinas Government

The Chinese character for China means middle kingdom. Why? Long ago, Chinese people believed China was the center of the world. Today, China has 22 provinces, plus five autonomous regions like Tibet, created for minority groups, four separate big cities (Shanghai, Beijing, Chongqing, and Tianjin), plus Hong Kong and Macau.

This is the Great Hall of the People in Beijing where the National Peoples Congress meets.

The National Peoples Congress elects Chinas President (Xi Jinping in 2013), and the President of the Supreme Peoples Court. The people of China do not elect their leaders. The laws and programs carried out in China are developed and approved by the Communist Party, and enforced locally by people appointed by the Party.

Chinas money is called the renminbi, or RMB for short. A common unit of RMB is the yuan.

Did you know Taiwan was originally part of China? In 1949, Taiwan separated from China, keeping Chinas name (the Republic of China, or ROC), while mainland China became the Peoples Republic of China, or PRC. Like two arguing brothers, Taiwan and China disagree over whether or not Taiwan should still be a part of China. Perhaps one day they will find a way to coexist in harmony. Taiwan is bustling with growth, just like China.

Chinas Favorite Folk Song

Mo Li Hua means Jasmine Flowers

Composed during the reign of Emperor Qianlong (17351796), Mo Li Hua has been performed on many important occasions, including the opening of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

The Legend of Pan Gu

How the Earth Came To Be

Before Earth existed, a giant egg floated in the vast universe. Inside was a jumble of yin and yang, the foundation of life, and a powerful giant, Pan Gu, who was waking up from a sleep of thousands of years.

Where am I? roared Pan Gu. I will build a new world from this yin and yang. I will create women and men who will know sadness and joy, and eat food that is both bitter and sweet, so they may live a full life. Out of the shell he made the sky, Earth, mountains, and valleys. His breath became the wind and clouds. As he passed away, his blood became the oceans and rivers, his eyes became the moon and the sun, and his hair turned into trees, flowers, birds, animals, insects, and of course, people.