YOUNGSTERS were taken on a journey from Greenock’s east end to the Far East as they celebrated Chinese New Year.

Pupils at Blairmore Children’s Centre learned about the culture and traditions in China ahead of the biggest day in the country’s calendar, which took place on Saturday.

To celebrate Chinese New Year, all last week the young people took part in a host of activities to enhance their understanding of the occasion.

Children at the nursery, which has around 50 youngsters, have been busy making lanterns, dragon masks and watching videos of parades and celebrations around the world.

They also set up their very own corner dedicated to Chinese culture, complete with traditional outfits and cooking utensils, to mark the year of the rooster.

The week ended with a beautiful banquet of food for everyone to enjoy.

Marie Crawford, Blairmore’s head teacher, said: “The children got to learn about the whole festival and what Chinese New Year is all about.

“They made lanterns, dragon masks and we had a Chinese corner with costumes to try on.

“It helped give the children a bit of an idea of the culture and it finished with a delicious banquet.

“Everyone really enjoyed it, especially tasting the Chinese food!”

The youngsters at the centre also learned how to write their own names in Chinese and teachers say they embraced the topic.

Mrs Crawford said: “The children and the staff all really enjoyed it.

“They’ve been writing their names in the language and looking at the differences in our alphabets.

“We also showed them video clips of things like dragon parades.

“They had great fun learning about the culture involved.”