Happy Year of the Horse!

Now in her 14th year of organizing Lunar New Year events, Upper School Mandarin Teacher Lois Chung reflected on this year’s celebration. The Year of the Horse, she explained, symbolizes “energy, perseverance, and forward momentum,” qualities she believes mirror the spirit of the school community as students collaborate to prepare celebrations. “It is a reminder to embrace challenges with courage, stay committed to our goals, and continue building connections across cultures,” Lois said. She views the event as a living expression of the language program’s mission. Students do not simply study culture. They step into it as ambassadors, sharing traditions with peers and younger students through celebration.

Across campus, Lunar New Year is a shared K–12 experience, with each division marking the holiday through learning, performance, and cultural exchange.

On Feb. 23, the Lower School gathered for a festive Community Meeting highlighted by a vibrant Lion Dance. Performers moved through the crowd distributing stuffed horses, a playful nod to the zodiac year, while students clapped along to the rhythmic drums. Afterward, children received themed candies, snacks, and decorations.

Learning extended beyond the assembly. In classrooms, students explored how Lunar New Year is observed across Asia, studying traditions from China, South Korea, Vietnam, Mongolia, Tibet, and Singapore. Using slides and visuals, students compared foods, clothing, decorations, and customs, then created illustrated posters representing each culture’s celebration. 

The Lower and Middle School library supported the learning with a themed book display featuring titles such as Bringing in the New Year by Grace Lin and Tomorrow Is New Year's Day by Aram Kim, giving students literary windows into holiday traditions.

In the Middle School, Lunar New Year was marked on the day of the holiday with a special advisory celebration centered on student voices. Volunteers shared personal family traditions, explaining customs such as hóngbāo, or red envelopes, Bàinián greetings that express respect and blessings, lucky numbers, decorative symbols, and traditional foods.

After the presentations, advisory groups participated in an activity connecting self-reflection with culture. Students first considered their own personality traits, then compared them with characteristics associated with the zodiac animals, sparking conversations about identity, symbolism, and tradition.

“This year is more community-wide in the Middle School than in the past,” said Mandarin Teacher Mimi Chiu. “We used to have our celebrations just in Mandarin classes, but this year we expanded that invitation to everybody in the community and had speakers who can identify themselves with the culture.”

Mimi also shared a special surprise: a video greeting from her friends in Taiwan, who were, she said, “over the moon” to connect with students. “I was happy to be able to bring a native speaker from the Taiwanese community,” she added, emphasizing the importance of authentic voices in cultural learning.

For Upper School students, the celebration became a stage for leadership and collaboration. Festivities featured performances and interactive booths organized by students, with younger visitors invited to join. Third graders attended again this year, turning the event into a cross-divisional exchange where older students taught traditions through special cultural booths, native foods, and the assembly.

Lois sees these moments as the culmination of language learning in action. The celebration, she explains, is not just an annual event but a student-centered experience that brings Mandarin studies to life. Students apply vocabulary, cultural knowledge, and presentation skills in real interactions, transforming academic study into lived experience.

“For me personally, the celebration reflects the heart of our Mandarin program: learning through action, honoring cultural traditions, and fostering a joyful, inclusive community,” she says. “Seeing students take ownership, share their learning with younger students and peers, and celebrate together is one of the most rewarding moments of the year.”

The festivities continued beyond the school day when the Poly Asian Affinity Group (PAAG) hosted its second Lunar New Year celebration on March 1 on South Campus. The event featured a Lion Dance, Korean drummers and dancers, a zither musician, and a student fashion show representing countries across Asia. Organized by an executive committee of parents composed of Kamatchi Anand P’31, Bing Bai P’31, Janet Cho P’31, Jamie Williams P’27, Li Yang P’26 P’31, Mindy Zhang P’34., the gathering highlighted how cultural celebration can unite families as well as students.

For Jamie Williams, the event held personal significance. “As a Filipino Chinese, I already feel like a minority,” she said. “It gives me pride to feel included by this group, and it’s nice to be part of this committee as well who is trying to make this celebration really robust.”

Kamatchi Anand shared a similar perspective from a parent’s point of view. “Even though India is in Asia, we don’t celebrate Lunar New Year, so for me it’s a great opportunity for my kids to understand about how other countries celebrate this time,” she said. “I want my kids to understand what Lunar New Year is all about, especially as my daughter is learning Mandarin so she can teach future generations, too.”