The Dragon Playground
A free Mid-Autumn Festival coloring page. US Letter, portrait, ready to print.
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From the story “The Dragon Playground” in Once Upon a Mid-Autumn Moon in Singapore — eleven bedtime tales for ages 4–10, each with a word search and a coloring page of its own.
A slow slide down
On festival night, lanterns glow along the corridors of the flats while children crowd the dragon playground below. Marcus finds little Aisyah frozen at the top of the slide. He skips a race with the older kids and slides down slowly with her, an arm around her. Then she wants to go again.
Look for the tiled dragon playground between tall blocks of flats at night, children playing on it, the dragon's curling head and slide, lanterns, and the full moon.
The flats and the dragon
Many Singapore families live in tall blocks of public flats, known as HDB flats, with playgrounds below. The dragon playground, its body made of thousands of tiny tiles, is a favorite meeting place for neighbors. The word jaga (jah-gah) means to look after someone, which is what Marcus does.
At the top of the slide
- Aisyah could not come down. When have you been stuck, and what helped?
- Marcus offered to go down with her. How is that different from telling her to just go?
- Would you choose a race or a small neighbor who needs you?
Tile the dragon
The story's dragon is covered in small red and cream tiles. Color it that way, in alternating squares, and save the head and slide for last.