On February 6th, 2025, the Chinese Club and Asian Student Union along with the Student Council hosted a Chinese New Year celebration with delicious Asian food, traditional games, and a live lion dance performance. The next day on Friday, February 7th, Mandarin students went on a field trip to an Asian market in Plano to use their Mandarin speaking skills and immerse themselves in Chinese culture.

What is the Chinese New Year?

Chinese New Year, also referred to as the Lunar New Year due to it happening in relation to the lunar calendar, is the most important celebration in Asian culture. Lunar New Year is not only celebrated in China but in many other Asian countries including Japan and Vietnam as well as places with a large Asian population like Hawaii. The celebration takes place every year around late January to early February. This year, it fell on January 29th, 2025. Every year is 1 of 12 Chinese zodiacs, with it being the year of the snake this year.

Chinese New Year Celebration

Entertainment

After an opening speech from one of the Chinese club leaders, there was lion dance performance. Students were encouraged to “feed” the lion as it came around with the red envelopes they had received as it is said to bring good luck in Chinese culture. After the lion dance there were multiple kung fu performances along with an opportunity for students to try out kung fu for themselves.

Food

Thanks to the generosity of Cafe Hunan as well as the Asian Student, students were able to enjoy incredible Chinese food from egg rolls to noodles. There was also refreshing boba tea and Chinese candies ranging from more nutty and savory options to more fruity and sour candies.

Games

In addition to the food and entertainment, there were also multiple games that students could play for tickets to exchange for Chinese snacks or a commemorative year of the snake pendant. The games that were available were the 2,000-year-old Chinese Hackey Sack, Chinese Jump Rope, and dice game. In the Chinese Hackey Sack game, participants had to bounce the Hackey Sack on their foot a certain number of times to win tickets. While playing Chinese Jump Rope, participant would have had to line up and run and jump through the jump rope a certain number of times with as few mess-ups as possible. In the dice game, students could bet their tickets and potentially double or triple their tickets with the risk of losing them.

Mandarin Field Trip

In addition to the Chinese New Year Celebration, Jesuit and Ursuline students enrolled in Mandarin classes had the opportunity to go on a field trip to celebrate the Lunar New Year for a day full of singing, speaking, and shopping.

Singing & Interviews

Upon their arrival to the market, students sang various Chinese songs they had learned. After this, they entered the market and interviewed both shoppers and fellow students in Mandarin to practice their skills and to be able to learn how to comfortably speak in Mandarin. Questions such as people’s nationality or their favorite Chinese dishes were asked.

“[The] Mandarin fieldtrip was an unforgettable experience as i was able to use my learing and studying of mandarin in the real world.”

– Evan jue ’28

Shopping & Dining

While students were in the supermarket, they went on a scavenger hunt to discover different Chinese produce, snacks, and more. After this, students were allowed to eat lunch at one of the many incredible Asian restaurants in the market which ranged from ramen to barbecue.

Conclusion

This year, students at Jesuit were able to immerse themselves in Chinese culture in many ways. From tasting traditional Chinese cuisine to trying their hand in kung fu, students were able to both learn about and experience various parts of Chinese culture. All of this was possible thanks to the amazing generosity of the Student Council and parent volunteers as well as all members and moderators of the Chinese Club and Asian Student Union. If you missed out on the Chinese New Year Celebration, be sure to attend it next year!

Thanks to Mrs. Lu and all other Chinese Club, Asian Student Union, and Student Council members for helping make this article possible.

Stay tuned to the Roundup for more Chinese Club coverage!