The year 2025 is the Year of the Snake in the lunar calendar. On February 12th, Friends Select Upper School held their Lunar New Year Assembly to celebrate the arrival of the Year of the Snake. The Assembly was organized by the Asian Student Union (ASU), Chinese Culture Club (CCC), Upper School Mandarin teacher Yan Huang, and her Mandarin class students. 

This year’s event focused on student performances coordinated by ASU & CCC. The clubs organized informational presentations and interactive games that brought the upper school community together in celebration of Asian traditions.

One of the highlights of the assembly was the variety of performances by students in Yan’s Mandarin classes. Mandarin 2 brought the Chinese martial arts they had learned in class to the stage, while Mandarin 3 performed a song called I Love Chinese Food, sharing their appreciation for Chinese food through music. The theatrical adaptation of Butterfly Lovers staged by the Advanced Mandarin class was also a success, which had the crowd laughing and engaged. CCC leader Tara Wang ‘26 said, “I really, really enjoyed Advanced Mandarin’s play, Butterfly Lovers. I was laughing the whole time. I hope to see another wonderful play like this next year.”

Yan, who has been part of the Lunar New Year Assembly for 16 years, noted a significant improvement in this year’s event. She said, “The students are more willing to perform, and they feel prepared to be on stage, which is the biggest difference from last year.”

Both ASU and CCC worked closely with each other and Yan to ensure a smooth event. Tara said, “The Lunar New Year assembly is a great blend of both cultural exchange and entertainment.  The students have fun competing in Kahoot, catching candy thrown at the audience, and learning of the various traditions and cultures of Asia.”

While this year’s Lunar New Year was a success, the organizers are looking forward to making next year’s celebration even better. The leaders brought up ideas, including incorporating Lunar New Year traditions from other Asian cultures, improving even scheduling to ensure the flow, and having more club inputs in the assembly.

The 2025 Lunar New Year assembly was a meaningful event that brought the FSS community together; as ASU leader Jing Lin ‘27 said, “For many of us at FSS, it’s more than just a holiday where we get school off, but also a time to see family and just celebrate. Everyone’s Lunar New Year is different, but our celebrations bring us together.”