Kids Can Make a Zine About Their Family at Vancouver's Chinese Canadian Museum
On November 21, Vancouver's Chinese Canadian Museum pairs short Asian Comics tours with a drop-in zine-in-a-box craft. Bring a small box, RSVP for admission, and ask a grandparent one ordinary weekly habit to draw.
A clean box from the recycling bin is most of the prep.
On Saturday, November 21, 2026, the Chinese Canadian Museum hosts Family Discovery: Comics for the Family from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 51 East Pender Street in Vancouver's Chinatown.
Families can drop in for a zine-in-a-box craft. There are also two short tours of Asian Comics: Evolution of an Art Form, the museum's Canadian premiere of the Barbican show.
The craft comes with museum admission. Bring the box. Staff supply the rest while materials last.
Kids leave with a comic panel about someone they actually live with. Po Po's tea habit fits the brief better than a speech about identity.
Craft window and tour times
Zine-in-a-box is drop-in from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. You can skip the tour and still make the craft.
Tours run at 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. Each is about thirty minutes.
Rosalie Gunawan, the museum's education and public programs manager, leads "Behind the Stories and Storytellers of Asian Comics." She highlights authors in the show whose work carries family and personal history. The galleries are already open; this Saturday adds the kid craft beside them.
How to book
RSVP online before you go. The museum prefers advance registration and still takes drop-ins.
Book through the Comics for the Family listing on the museum's ticketing site. You can also start at chinesecanadianmuseum.ca/tickets or the Family Discovery page.
The program fee is zero. Admission or an annual pass still applies. Kids 12 and under need an adult with them.
Pack a small box that can hold a folded zine. A matchbox, tea box, or jewelry box is enough.
One prompt if a grandparent is coming
On the SkyTrain, ask: "What is one ordinary thing you do every week that I should draw?"
Chess after dinner works. So does bitter melon in the garden, mooncakes bought after the Mid-Autumn sale, or singing in the shower.
The museum's craft brief already asks for portraits of loved ones and everyday moments. Start there.
Let the grandparent answer in whatever language they use at home. The child can caption the panel in English, Chinese, or both. Put it in the box before you leave so something from the day rides home with you.
What to do this week
Hold November 21, dig up a box tonight, and text the program link to whoever can RSVP.
Morning people can take the 11:30 tour and craft afterward. If naps rule the day, aim for the 1 p.m. tour and the later craft window.