Celebrate Vietnam National Day on 2nd September with these Vietnam crafts for kids! Learn about the country’s history, culture & more!

Everyone loves an underdog story, and such movies often do very well at the box office. However, have you heard about an underdog country? A country that suffered so much but has risen through everything to become loved by everyone?

Well, that’s Vietnam for you!

Vietnam has been through a lot. It was colonized by the French in the 1800s, and then occupied by Japan in 1940, only to be captured again by France after World War II. Even though they gained independence in 1954, it was followed by a devastating civil war, trade embargo and other conflicts. It was only in the mid-1980s that some sort of stability entered the region.

But today, Vietnam has grown by leaps and bounds and is now considered one of the fastest-growing tourist destinations in the world. It is the fifth most visited country in the Asia-Pacific region, and its cities Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and Ha Long are among the top 100 most visited cities in the world. Now that’s an inspiring underdog story!

As Vietnam celebrates its National Day on 2nd September, we join in to celebrate its indomitable spirit – with some awesome Vietnam crafts for kids!

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15 Vibrant Vietnam Crafts for Kids

1. Vietnam Lapbook

We start our list of Vietnam crafts for kids with a printable lapbook from Homeschool Share, which gives us basic information about the country. For example, did you know that Vietnam’s largest city is Ho Chi Minh City? It is named after Ho Chi Minh, also known as Uncle Ho, who was a communist revolutionary and the first president of the country. You can still see his body, preserved and displayed in a mausoleum and open to visitors from December to September.

2. Vietnamese Paper Dolls

Here’s a cute little paper doll from So Dang Fun, dressed in a Vietnamese outfit! The Vietnamese national dress is known as the áo dài, and is worn by both men and women. It consists of a long tunic with a closed collar and buttons on the left side, worn with loose pants. The women’s tunics are usually longer than the men’s.

3. One-Pillar Pagoda Craft

The One Pillar Pagoda, or Mot Cot Pagoda, is one of Vietnam’s most iconic architectural structures. It was built around a thousand years ago and features an entire temple built on a single stone pillar in the middle of a lake. It is inspired by the image of a lotus blooming on a lake, and Good Morning Vietnam does a good job of recreating it in this simple project!

4. Vietnam Flag Drawing Tutorial

Vietnam’s national flag is a simple red rectangle with a five-point yellow star in the middle. The red represents revolution and blood, and is also a color symbolizing communism. The yellow star has five points that represent the five social categories – farmers, workers, soldiers, intellectuals, and entrepreneurs. Learn how to draw the flag with this tutorial from Art for Kids Hub.

5. Vietnam A to Z Book

Here’s a fun addition to this list of Vietnam crafts for kids – a book! This one by Elka Ray is full of fun illustrations celebrating Vietnamese culture while learning the alphabet! Start with A for áo dài all the way to Z for the Vietnamese Zodiac – it’s a fun journey!

6. Vietnamese New Year Lantern Craft

Like the Chinese, the Vietnamese follow a lunar calendar with zodiac signs based on animals. However, there are a few differences; for instance, the rabbit from the Chinese calendar is replaced with the cat. This is because the Chinese word for rabbit sounds much like the Vietnamese word for cat. So if it’s the Year of the Rabbit in the Chinese calendar, it’s the Year of the Cat for the Vietnamese, which is the right time to make this lantern from So Dang Fun!

7. Vietnamese Folk Tale Peg Dolls

As you make these Vietnam crafts for kids, it’s a great idea to check out some folk tales from the country, like the story of Tam and Cam, which is quite similar to Cinderella’s tale. It can be fun to act out some of these stories with puppets, and Nancy Moore shows us how to make them with peg dolls!

8. Caodaism Divine Eye Craft

Vietnam is unique in many ways, and one of them is that they have their own religion called Caodaism, which has elements of Vietnamese folk religion, Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, and Roman Catholicism. The main deity is called Cao Dai, symbolized by the Divine Eye – an eye inside a triangle surrounded by 16 rays. Unremarkable Files has an interesting project where you can paint the eye on a smooth rock – it’s quite a striking result!

9. Vietnamese Silk Painting using Acrylic Paint

Have you tried painting on silk? It’s quite difficult, and a single wrong stroke can mess up the painting. However, the Vietnamese have mastered it! Silk painting is a popular art form in the country, and often features landscapes, pagodas or scenes of daily life. Try your hand at it with this tutorial from Paint Daily.

10. Moon Festival Lanterns

Besides the Lunar New Year, the Vietnamese have another major celebration – the Moon Festival or the Mid Autumn Festival. It is celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, which is believed to be the night when the moon shines the brightest. Join in the celebrations with this moon lantern from So Dang Fun that also features some moon cakes!

11. Vietnam Conical Hat Craft

You can’t have a list of Vietnam crafts for kids without talking about something everyone associates with the Vietnamese people – the conical hat! Also known as the nón lá, this is a perfectly conical hat usually made from leaves. The hats are often plain on the outside, but the real fun lies inside, which people customize to their liking. Make your own mini versions with this craft from Kiki Kids.

12. Tet Collaborative Art Pack

The biggest festival in Vietnam is undoubtedly the Lunar New Year, also known as Tết Nguyên Đán or simply Tet. It’s an occasion for families to get together and pray for their ancestors while dressing up and giving gifts. We love this collaborative project from Twinkl that celebrates various aspects of the Tet festival. It includes 24 pages that come together to create a stunning piece of art!

13. Vietnamese New Year Decorations

Not unlike the Chinese, the Vietnamese consider red envelopes lucky and hang them as part of their New Year celebrations. Other things you’ll find are cherry blossom flowers, hoa mai branches and signs with greetings. You can make your own with this craft from Mama Snow Cooks – add in a message of Chúc Mừng Năm Mới, which means Happy New Year!

14. Crepe Paper Lotus Craft

The lotus is Vietnam’s national flower and is quite revered among the people. For the Vietnamese, the lotus symbolizes purity, elegance and optimism, since it blooms even through the muddiest waters. Learn more about the significance of the lotus with this crepe paper lotus craft.

15. Vietnam Fact Sheet and Coloring Page

Let’s wind up our list of Vietnam crafts for kids with a coloring page and fact sheet from Joey Dolls! Learn some more trivia about this amazing country, like this one: Vietnam is home to eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites. In fact, Hoi An city was ranked as one of the world’s top 15 tourist destinations by Travel + Leisure magazine!

We hope you’ve enjoyed this little virtual trip with the help of these Vietnam crafts for kids. It’s truly an amazing country worth visiting, and we hope these projects will inspire to go there one day!

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