The "Practice Leads the Way" event for the International Children's Day in 2025 was held at the former residence of Soong Ching Ling, the Honorary President of the People's Republic of China, in Beijing on the morning of May 30.
Shen Beili, Secretary of the Leading Party Members' Group and Vice-Chairperson of the China Soong Ching Ling Foundation (CSCLF), attended the event and extended holiday greetings to children from both home and abroad.
Shen said that President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, has always paid great attention to the education of children and teenagers and that he asked the CSCLF to carry on Madame Soong's lofty ideals, grasp a clear understanding of the theme of the times, give full play to its unique strength and facilitate the growth of youth in a congratulatory letter over its 40th founding anniversary in May 2022.
Shen said that the CSCLF has inherited and developed Madame Soong's concepts and practices of "Young Mr." (a title given to young inheritors of Madame Soong's noble spirit), built it into a practice and education platform for youth, and held a series of thematic activities for children at home and abroad to further deepen the implementation of the guiding principles of Xi's important instructions on youth. With the theme of "Practice Leads the Way", the "Young Mr. of the Times" activity has fully embodied its distinctive characteristics and met new requirements of economic and social development. During the past year, the Management Center for the Former Residence of Soong Ching Ling has organized the "Young Mr. of the Times" activity with fruitful results, strengthened its collaboration with relevant departments in the capital city, nurtured recipients of the special title with the "Top Ten" as the main representative, and helped children grow into builders and inheritors of the cause of the socialism.
At the gathering, attending officials and guests presented honorary certificates to winners of the "Top Ten" of 2025, "Outstanding Young Mr. of the Times", and the "Most Beautiful Teachers in Practical Education" respectively.
Children from local kindergartens, primary schools and martial arts schools gave their artistic shows. For instance, the group drum performance titled "Chinese Youth" by Huize Kindergarten was innovative and lively, with drumbeats echoing the passionate declaration of domestic children. The song and dance performance titled "My Home in Shichahai" by Central Axis Children's Choir left a deep impression on the audience with the imaginary scenery of locust flower-scented breezes brushing over gray bricks and tiles. The situational dance titled "Autumn Harvest and Winter Storage" by domestic and international students from the Bangbaobei Children's Academy was vivid and lifelike. The performance titled "Hutong Childhood: Story Kaleidoscope" by students from Yaar Hutong Primary School in the forms of Peking Opera and fast board was cheerful and full of regional flavor. The martial arts performance titled "Young Heroic Spirit" by Guoren Fist Training Institute was powerful and spectacular. The performance concluded with a chorus show titled "What the World Has Given Me" by students from Changqiao Primary School.
Prior to the artistic performances, attending officials and guests attended a special exhibition about extraordinary achievements made by the "Young Mr. of the Times" event in practice education, listened to excellent explanation of children, and appreciated their development.
The celebration event was co-hosted by the Management Center for the Former Residence of Soong Ching Ling and the Shichahai Sub-district Office of Xicheng District of Beijing under the guidance of the CSCLF. Those in attendance of the special event included Li Anjin, Deputy Secretary-General of the CSCLF and Director of the Management Center for the Former Residence of Soong Ching Ling, Michael Crook, Member of the CSCLF Council and Chairman of the International Committee for the Promotion of Chinese Industrial Cooperatives, Gao Fuyuan, Member of the CSCLF Council and Secretary-General of the Special Committee on Social Classroom Education under Beijing Education Society, and Chen Lu, Party Chief of the Shichahai Sub-district Office.
