Pilot Program Aims to Give Rural Youngsters an Early Helping Hand

(Shangluo, Shaanxi) – Once a week, 2-year-old Wang Mengjie and her grandmother take a class together in her preschool in Wangyuan, one of the poorest villages in the northwestern province of Shaanxi.

The classroom has cushions, toys and a slide, and cartoon characters are drawn on the walls. Li Bo, a family planning official from a nearby town, shares ideas with parents and grandparents on teaching children through play, something of a first in an area where the average per capita income is less than 6,300 yuan.