Young students from Nantong Chengzhong Elementary School try their hands at traditional printing and dyeing, in an experience activity themed on the "auspicious year of the Tiger". The event took place at the Nantong Blue Calico Museum – located in the Chongchuan district of Nantong city in East China's Jiangsu province – on Jan 4. [Photo/CFP]

The school kids get to grips with the unique charms of traditional printing and dyeing – by fashioning their own design patterns, making blue calico scarves with tiger patterns, rubbing New Year paintings with auspicious meanings and sewing blue calico tiger-shaped puppets. [Photo/CFP]

In recent years, the Nantong Blue Calico Museum has worked with schools and communities in the city. It has staged blue calico printing and dyeing experience and promotional activities, to popularize the handicraft, which is a national intangible cultural heritage item. [Photo/CFP]