Carp Streamers

Putting up streamers in the shape of carp fish has been a spring tradition in Japan for many years. Colourful carp streamers look like they are flying in the blue sky. You can see carp streamers from the
end of April to the 5th of May. The tradition of putting up carp streamers is said to have begun during the Edo period.  On Children's Day, families with boys fly huge carp shaped streamers outside their house and display dolls of famous warriors and other heroes inside.  The carp are flown because they symbolise strength and success.  According to a Chinese legend, a carp swam upstream to become a
dragon.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN
We made carp fish out of tissue paper and we will tell you how.

1. First we got a big square of tissue paper and folded it in half.
2. Then we drew half of a carp fish, cut it out and unfolded the paper.
3. Then we glued the top of the carp together but we left the mouth unstuck.
4. After that we got two pipe cleaners and knotted them together. We put the pipe cleaners around the inside of the mouth to keep it open.
5. We used four coloured circles of tissue paper, two of one colour and two of another, for the eyes of the fish. One circle had to be smaller though, for the middle of the eye, so we folded two of the same colour circles in half and cut a semi-circle out of them and then unfolded them. Next we stuck down the eyes and got a sticker to stick in the middle for a pupil.
6. After that we got some more mini circles and cut them in half, then we stuck them on both sides of the fish to make scales.
7. Finally,we got coloured strips of tissue paper and glued them on the tail to make streamers.