On Apr 2, the Ministry of Education website released the “Notice on Further Strengthening Sleep Management for Primary and Secondary School Students”, which specifies three specific changes to the primary students’ schedule: sleep time should reach 10 hours a day, class time should be no earlier than 8.20am, and bedtime should be no later than 9.20pm. “The announcement earlier this month was aimed at getting children to sleep longer,” said a primary school principal. “However, [since]the first-class time has been delayed, the whole teaching arrangement has to be adjusted, so the specific implementation plan needs to be detailed.”

Mapo No. 2 Primary School in the Shunyi District recently adjusted the daily schedule of students in order to implement the “sleep order” recently announced by the Ministry of Education. Students will come to school in three groups under the new schedule:

• Students in grades 5 and 6 are the first to arrive at 7.45am.
• Grades 3 and 4 students then arrive at 7.50am.
• Grades 1 and 2 will arrive at 7.55am.

After arriving on campus, students can do a 30-minute morning exercise and then attend the first class at 8.30am. “Before, all students had [to]arrive on campus by 7.50 and… classes would start at 8am.” says Cui Shu-kun, principal of Mapo No. 2 Primary School. The new schedule received much positive feedback only days after it was launched. “The students, especially, are happy to get more sleep.”

Questions on the new system will inevitably arise, however. Since the starting time for school has been delayed, how will schools be able to guarantee enough class time every day? Will after-school activities be shortened? Cui made it clear that the school would not take away students’ time for physical exercise and extracurriculars. “In addition to 30-minute exercise in the morning, students also have physical education class every day, [and]also sports will be arranged in the time of after-school activities to absolutely ensure children’s physical exercise.”

The schedule will also be flexible according to a students’ special conditions. “Some parents need to be at work early and need to send their children to school earlier.” For these students, Cui said, the school has arranged for teachers to take care of them. “They can use the time to do morning exercises or go to the library for independent studies.”

Homework is also a major factor affecting students’ sleeping time. According to Cui, first and second graders do not have written homework, but only practical tasks such as reading, which are usually completed at school. For other grades, the school will adjust the total amount of homework. “There is a special area on the blackboard for teachers to assign homework. The head teacher will check the homework given by teachers in each subject and adjust the homework if it is found to be too much.”

Mapo No. 2 Primary School is not the only school that is considering a new schedule. A number of schools revealed that after the May Day holiday, they will also start to implement the new schedule and the first class will not start until 8.20am. Other primary and secondary schools are waiting for a unified notice from the education department.

KEEP READING: Extend School Hour to Keep Moms From Losing Jobs?

Images:  Baidu Image，Beijing Daily

The Beijing Municipal Development and Reform Commission recently issued the “Beijing 2021 Key Project Plan.” In 2021, Beijing will continue to implement the “three hundreds” projects, focusing on promoting 100 infrastructure, 100 people’s livelihood improvement, and 100 technological innovation and high-tech industrial projects. The total investment of the project exceeds RMB 1.3 trillion.

This year, Beijing will continue to build infrastructure projects, creating regionally connected transportation facilities and municipal facilities, which will lead to urban development and functional adjustments, and make living in the city even more convenient. Take the urban railway as an example, the following lines will be added to the subway lines and Beijing suburban railway this year:

• Suburban railway sub-center line upgrading (west part)
• Suburban railway northeast line upgrading
• Suburban Railway S2 Line reconstruction (south part)
• Subway line 14 finishing
• Subway line 19 part I
• Subway line 8 part III
• Subway line S1
• Subway line 11 (Winter Olympic Branch)
• Subway line 28 (CBD Line)
• Airport express north part
• Subway Changping Line south part
• Subway line 22 (Pinggu Line)
• Subway line 17
• Subway line 13 upgrading
• Subway line 12
• Subway line 3 part I
• Subway line 16 south part

For the people’s livelihood project, the goal of this plan is to meet the multi-level and diversified needs of the people and to evenly develop education, medical & elderly care, culture, and sports resources. In order to increase support for primary and secondary schools in key areas and rural areas, the following educational projects are arranged:

• Beijing No.1 Experimental School
• Zijin Shinkansen School phase II
• Beijing Future City School (a new 12-year school)
• Beijing City International School (Wangjing)
• Dongcheng Special Education School (reconstruction)
• Shijingshan School Affiliated to Peking University (new site)
• Shijingshan Experimental Middle School of Beijing No.11 School
• Beijing Haidian Foreign Language Experimental School Yanqing campus
• Renmin University of China Tongzhou campus phase I
• Beijing Information Science and Technology University(new campus)
• Beijing Technology and Business University Liangxiang campus phase II
• Beijing Film Academy Huairou campus
• Beijing City University Shunyi campus phase III
• Affiliated High School of Capital Normal University Tongzhou campus
• Changping School Affiliated to Tsinghua University
• Fengtai Experimental School Affiliated to Beijing Institute of Education
• Shunyi Experimental School Affiliated to Beijing Normal University

In order to speed up the construction of a complete medical service system, the newly-built or rebuilt medical projects are as follows:

• Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention (new site)
• Children’s Hospital Tongzhou branch
• Beijing Chaoyang Wuzhou Women’s and Children’s Hospital
• Fangshan Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine (new site)
• Fengtai Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine phase II
• Haidian Sujiatuo Central Hospital
• Beijing Jishuitan Hospital Huilongguan branch
• Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital phase II
• Beijing Chaoyang Hospital east branch
• Beijing Stomatological Hospital(new site)
• Beijing Friendship Hospital Shunyi branch
• Beijing Friendship Hospital Tongzhou branch phase II
• Beijing Anzhen Hospital Tongzhou branch
• Anzhen Dongfang Hospital
• Fengtai Hospital reconstruction
• Huairou Hospital phase II

In addition, to promote the construction of a national cultural center and increase the numbers of sports facilities, Beijing will be building cultural and sports projects such as the Beijing Opera and Dance Theater, the East Hall of the Capital Museum, the Winter Olympic Plaza, etc.

The Plan also involves the construction of greening projects such as Shahe Wetland Park in Changping, Wenyu River Park in Shunyi and Chaoyang, and Chaobai River Forest Landscape. In addition, in order to promote technological innovation and the development of cultural industries, the Plan mentions the construction of cultural tourism projects, including:

• Legoland
• Wine World Expo
• Songzhuang Art Town
• Beijing International Design Week permanent venue
• Universal Beijing Resort phase I
• China Art Exchange Center
• Shougang Industrial Relic Park (Winter Olympics related)

Click here to see the whole Project Plan!

KEEP READING: Universal Resort Beijing Reveals New Glimpse of Seven Themed Lands

Images: Pexels

Finally Back to School

Saying “there’s never been a back to school like this before” is an understatement. After months of wondering whether the Sep 1 back to school announcement will actually happen or if last-minute changes would halt the plans, we’re excited to see schools all across the city welcome back their students after strict distancing measures have been put in place.

Shake Shack Opens in Beijing

Shake Shack opened its first location right in the middle of Sanlitun Taikoo Li. While some might say that Shake Shack is just a fast-food burger, others swear that it’s the best burger they’ve ever had. You be the judge, but in the first weeks following their grand opening, the line outside of Shake Shack was literally out the door — over an hour’s wait to be precise.

Extra Points for IB

Following the global outcry of students dissatisfied by their International Baccalaureate (IB) score, the company faced criticism over its handling of the testing in the wake of COVID-19 and adjusted the scores. In an official statement issued by IB, the company said “We listened carefully to the concerns raised by some schools, students and their families . . . Our review and analysis of the detailed information from schools offered invaluable insights, leading the IB to evaluate and recommend grade adjustments, where applicable, that we believe are fair to all students.”

Find The Perfect School for Your Child

With over 80 international schools in attendance, educational forums given by both parents and experts, activities for burgeoning student entrepreneurs, and much more, the Jingkids International School Expo (JISE) 2020 is something you can’t miss! Join us this coming Oct 24-25 at Beijing Renaissance Capital Hotel.

KEEP READING: 5,000+ Families Search for the Perfect School at JISE, Oct 24 – 25

Images: beijingkids, unsplash, Joey Knotts

This article appeared in the beijingkids 2020 October issue

Hot & Spicy Fest 2020

This year’s Hot & Spicy Fest was a weekend of fun, music, drinks, and (of course) a ton of deliciously spicy food, and a great crowd showed up to celebrate despite the threat of bad weather. Luckily, the rain never came and the good times rolled on! It just goes to show that when it comes to having fun, there’s no stopping us Beijingers. Stay tuned for more food festivals coming up later on in the year.

For food lovers, there’s more to come! The Beijinger‘s annual Burger Fest is just around the corner. This year’s superhero-themed festival will be held on Sept 18 – 20. What’s more, the fest will feature the superpowers of our title sponsor JSS and their caped delivery crusaders, a great way to get your favorite burger – or just about anything else, from fine foods to fresh groceries – brought straight to your door.

Meet Our New Deputy Managing Editor

Beijingkids welcomes Cindy Marie Jenkins as our new Deputy Managing Editor. Jenkins hails from Los Angeles where she was a writer, director, and marketer for theaters and nonprofits. Her published works address the intersection of parenting, travel, culture, and work. Cindy consults with both work-at-home-parents, employers who want to hire them, and most recently helped live theaters pivot to virtual experiences. She lives in Beijing with her husband and two kids aged four and six. She read beijingkids for four years before moving here and we’re so thrilled for her to join the team!

We’ll Miss You, Anna!

As we welcome in our new Deputy Managing Editor Cindy Marie Jenkins, we say farewell to Anna Pellegrin Hartley who’s been an integral part of the beijingkids team over the past few months. Pellegrin Hartley has been a part of the True Run Media family for 2 years, first working as the Senior Editor and Digital Media Strategist at the Beijinger before moving over to beijingkids. Pellegrin Hartley’s personality was like a ray of sunshine and we’re going to miss seeing her in the office every day. We wish her all the best in her next big adventure!

Summer Well Spent

We’ve had such an amazing time working with our interns this summer. This group of talented young writers contributed their unique voice and views of our beloved city. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank Dorothy Asiedu, Qinglan Du, Jack He, Olivia Li, Pranav Sundararajan, Eloise Wester, FeiFei Xu, TianTian Xu, and Lauren Zhou for their hard work. We’re so impressed with the quality and maturity of your work, and know that you will achieve great things in life. It’s been a privilege working with you guys!

KEEP READING: Liangma River Revamp Shapes up Nicely, More Than Half Now Open

Images: Uni You, Heidi Vale Photography, unsplash

This article appeared in the beijingkids 2020 September issue

Barring another outbreak, cinephiles in China may yet again find themselves in front of the big screen. The China Film Administration (CFA) announced via its website Thursday that the country’s movie theaters could begin opening to the public as early as Jul 20, as long as they are located in low-risk areas. As of Jul 16, Beijing has just four medium-risk areas, all of which are in Fengtai district, and no high-risk areas remaining.

Movie theaters have been the subject of much online debate as insiders have insisted that forced closures are doing undue damage to China’s film industry. Of course, movie makers are adept at playing up drama, and it seems this time, it really has gotten them their way.

As we are accustomed to expecting at this point, the reopenings will be accompanied by strict policies that aim to make the cinema a safe place for movie-goers.

Movie-goers will have to maintain social distance in cinemas

According to the document released by the CFA, cinemas will have to keep track of employee health, perform regular disinfections between screenings, and provide good ventilation. Moreover, screening times will be reduced and are limited to a maximum of two hours per screening.

Critically, ticket sales will be moved online, and a minimum of one meter between viewers who do not book together is required, meaning that there will be significantly less seating available.

The document does not mention requirements about mask-wearing for viewers, but the CFA wrote on its website that cinemas must adhere to local requirements. As of yet, there is no word from the city about whether it will implement stricter policies for cinemas than the national standard.

KEEP READING: Join in the Summer Fun With the 2020 beijingkids Scavenger Hunt!

This article originally appeared on our sister site, theBeijinger

Images: Corina Rainer via Unsplash, Sina

The walk down the bike-strewn path from my apartment to Chaoyang Park via Solana over the past six months has not been a particularly scenic one. Ever since the massive renovations of Liangma River were announced in February of last year and began shortly thereafter, a range of new but not exactly tourist-luring features descended on the neighborhood. These have included but are not limited to mounds of construction debris, ragged and bent astroturfed metal walls, and the occasional but shudder-inducing waft of weeks upon weeks of stale worker piss.

The development runs from just west of Xingdong Lu up to the East Fourth Ring Road. Click through for Google Maps.

Luckily these quirks are merely the temporary byproducts of men hard at work and as the overhaul nears completion, running the length of the river from Xindong Lu up to the East Fourth Ring Road, the unsavory sights and smells are gradually parting to reveal what’s shaping up to be one of Beijing’s lushest linear ecological spaces.

You can’t help but wonder what weird and wonderful things were found at the bottom of the river

When the plan to dredge the river and develop 9.3km of its banks was first announced close to 15 months ago – a means to help reduce air pollution and manage flooding – the government also billed it as a green, tourist-friendly, leisure hub. Judging by what has opened so far, we’re inclined to agree, though let’s hope the official name, “Liangma River International Waterfront Area” doesn’t stick, lest we tempt destroying the quaint charm of its paved paths, weeping willows, and swimming retirees.

We should add that there doesn’t appear to be a dedicated running track along the river, which shouldn’t be too much of a problem given the generous width of most of the paths.

Hopping on our bike on a photography tour earlier this week, we tracked the river from its northeast corner down to the west. Here’s what we found.

While the Solana side is almost complete, the Chaoyang Park portion looks to be done by year’s end.

A bridge further to the west allows apartments on the north bank to cross directly into Solana

Finishing touches are still being added to the portions north of Solana’s west gate

And just across the road, workers continue plugging away behind the green fences

The river reopens just west of Maizidian Jie

While hosepipes still line the ground, this portion is almost complete and particularly lush

Looking east up towards Solana

The north bank sits against the backends of Liangmaqiao Lu’s hotels and provides plenty of free space.

As well as a little shade courtesy of a netted sculpture

Swimmers are already enjoying the relatively clean waters

So too are the cyclists. Let’s hope Beijing’s waimai army doesn’t join in.

A view from the south to north bank, still closed

Steps down to the river allow swimmers easy access

Finally, crossing Xindong Lu, construction is still ongoing and seems like it will be the last portion to complete

Despite the mess…

…The local fishermen seem unperturbed

KEEP READING: Exploring Shunyi’s New Dongjiao Wetland Park

This article originally appeared on our sister site, theBeijinger

Images: Tom Arnstein, Google Maps, Bill S.