Little Activities Go a Long Way

REAP researcher Xi Zhiqi witnesses how the parenting program’s activities help to enhance a toddler’s verbal and social-emotional skills. This is her story of Little Wei.

ZHE AN TOWNSHIP, DANFENG COUNTY – Seemingly simple activities like animal-naming games can have far-reaching effects in a child’s development.

The journey to Little Wei’s village is not easy, but parenting trainer Song Yuerong never complains about the trek or his work. He says, “The free rides and the 400 yuan (US$65) monthly stipend don’t matter to me. The most important thing for me is to do my best at my job.”.

I saw it with Little Wei. The toddler was born three-months premature and spoke with slurred speech. His father is a migrant laborer and his grandparents are illiterate. His mother, his primary caretaker, is very shy and spoke only a few words to us.

The first time Song Yuerong, a parent trainer, and I visited their home, Little Wei ran away the minute he saw us and peeked at us from behind a curtain. When Song and Little Wei’s grandmother tried to engage the toddler with some modeling clay, he would only play silently with it on his own. Once in awhile, he uttered an incoherent phrase.

After that first visit, Song, a teacher who worked at the Family Planning Station at Zhe An Town, began visiting Little Wei once a week as part of the parent-training program. By the time I joined him in another parenting session two months later, it was clear that Song had won the trust and admiration of the family. This time, Little Wei was not afraid of us and did not dart away.

Song took out an animal chart and asked Little Wei to identity the creatures. As the mother held Little Wei, Song patiently pointed at each animal, giving clues such as “this one likes to eat fish” and “people can ride on this tall animal.” Although Little Wei’s speech was broken and unclear, he responded to Song’s prompts: “This is a dog …puppy dog … ah, this is a pony …a horse!”

Little Wei’s mother had learned how to play and interact with her son from Song’s weekly demonstrations. One of Little Wei’s favorite games is playing with a mini basketball; he and his mother can shoot hoops together for a long time.

Compared to the time I first met the boy, I was struck by how outgoing he had become. Little Wei no longer shied away from strangers, and although he still spoke a bit incoherently, he clearly enjoyed engaging with Song. Song treats Little Wei like his own child, and his efforts in going through the weekly activities have been rewarded with Little Wei’s growth and development.