Exchange students from Beijing, China, arrived in Chicago on Feb. 8 and from La Rochelle, France, Feb. 9. U-High students will host them until Feb.18.

Over the next few days, the exchange students will experience life at U-High, sitting in on classes and attending extracurricular activities. In addition to spending time with their host families, group activities, such as laser tag, have been planned.

Sophomore Lea Rebollo Baum planned to take her Chinese exchange student to the winter formal Feb. 9, and later to Chinatown.

“That should be really exciting to see,” she said. “You can compare the food and the ambiance in general.”

Xiaoli Zhou, a U-High Chinese teacher who directs the Chinese exchange, said these programs are a great opportunity to experience things that can’t be learned in the classroom and find “new ways to use the language.”

Over spring break, 14 students will travel to Beijing and 12 to La Rochelle to stay with their exchange students.