Shanghai hosted a grand Children's Day-themed gathering for local children and Young Pioneers on Monday with diverse activities.
A performance opened the first segment, recalling the 1940s when New Youth Newspaper was founded in Shanghai. Ten Young Pioneers were awarded for their outstanding achievements in moral, intellectual, physical, and aesthetic education.
A student volunteer group was founded in 2006 at Luwan No.1 Primary School. Over 20 years, more than 1,000 student guides have joined in the group, influencing more people.
A theatrical performance featured three generations of the team, sharing their experiences.
At the same time, a citywide initiative dedicated to providing long-term psychological care and companionship for vulnerable and migrant children in Shanghai was launched on Children's Day, bringing warm-hearted welfare services to younger residents in need.
Welfare workers from minor protection institutions across Shanghai's 16 districts, university representatives, social organization practitioners, volunteers and children gathered for the launch, marking a new chapter of sustainable child protection services in the city.
Shanghai is upgrading its child welfare system from basic living security to in-depth spiritual nurturing and mental health care for disadvantaged and migrant children, according to the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau.
The newly unveiled "Yueban Tongxin" program represents a key upgrade of Shanghai's child welfare services, shifting from extensive service coverage to high-quality, refined mental health support. It delivers consistent, heartfelt spiritual companionship to children in need and calls for joint efforts from all sectors of society to protect their growth and encourage them to pursue dreams with confidence and passion, according to the bureau.
Centered on warm and sustainable companionship, the program highlights reading, acceptance and companionship. Reading inspires children to explore the world and gain joy from knowledge; acceptance guides children to recognize and embrace their emotions and build positive self-awareness; and consistent companionship helps them form stable social support networks.
Under the initiative, long-term companionship instead of one-off charitable activities, joint growth for children, volunteers, families and communities, and diversified services that take reading as the core and expand to sports, art therapy and other inclusive programs will be highlighted.
Minor rescue and protection institutions at district and sub-district levels will roll out related services. College volunteer teams will provide regular grassroots companionship services, and expert teams will offer ongoing professional supervision and guidance.
To empower professional child mental health services, Shanghai has assembled an expert team from prestigious institutions including Fudan University, East China Normal University, Shanghai Children's Hospital and Children's Press and Publication House.
A batch of carefully selected books focusing on emotion management, family communication and self-cognition were presented to children's representatives. The books will be placed in mobile reading corners at minor protection stations across pilot sub-districts to enrich children's spiritual life.
