I became obsessed with educational play as soon as I found out I was pregnant. What could I do in and outside of the home to help my baby’s brain and character develop in such a way that he would reach each milestone with success, and of course have the best emotional, physical, and cognitive start to life?

Economist-turned-academic Ron Ferguson has forged a career out of studying the achievement gap. It may be common knowledge that factors such as a child’s race and socioeconomic status will create a wide learning gap between kids, but Ferguson discovered that these gaps could begin to take form and become visible at the tender age of just 2.

Which brings us to: how caregivers can encourage brain development before a child starts any formal learning. Here are five cost-effective, researched, and positive ways that parents and caregivers can help support their baby’s brain development. It’s as simple as interacting with our children and being responsive to them. These five principles have been named by Ferguson as the Boston Basics

1. Maximize love, manage stress

This might seem like an obvious one but can be hard to maintain or overlooked because of its simplicity. I’m a firm believer in moms and dads really looking after their physical and emotional well-being first. A happy parent will always equate to a happy child and according to this principle of Ferguson’s, babies pick up on negative emotion, so looking after oneself and offering unfettered and limitless love and affection will have a lasting influence on a child’s development.

2. Talk, sing, and point

This is a favorite of mine, and one that I try to do daily with my little one at home. Pointing at something helps babies to start associating words with objects. Some babies point before they can talk, and singing offers fun and engaging interaction in addition to helping your baby develop their vocabulary.

3. Count, group, and compare

I was happy to learn that babies love numbers and counting, and so embrace even more the endless counting that goes on in Mandarin with Ayi, and in English with mom and dad at home and playgroups. Ferguson also suggests that parents can introduce their kids to math vocabulary by using sentences that compare things: “Oh look, dad is tall but mom is short, ” or “There are two bananas and three mangos in the fruit basket”.

4. Explore through movement and play

This idea is based on the concept that your child is always learning while playing. In my post about Mommy and Me movement classes, I have written about how moms and dads can stay active and encourage learning and bonding through music and movement, so joining a class like this one can help encourage us to support our kids’ brain development!

5. Read and discuss stories

One of my fondest and earliest memories was having stories read to me, like my childhood favorite Peace At Last by Jill Murphy (and now the chosen night-time read for my little one). There were animal and object noises, the concept of not getting enough sleep, and problem solving, all in one short story about Mr Bear who found peace at last just as the alarm bell rang in the early hours of the morning to wake him up. Ferguson says it’s never too early to start reading aloud to your kids.

Hearing words increases vocabulary and relating objects to sounds, like the noise of the owl at night in the story I was read, starts to create connections in the brain. The Basics also places importance on discussion. If there is a elephant in your story and your little one so happens to have elephant in the toy box, point it out.

Have fun using these simple but key principles to support your baby’s brain development. I know I will!

Photos: Pixabay

Walking home one afternoon, I saw a confused, older European couple wandering near Beixinqiao Beiertiao. The husband gently asked, “Excuse me, but where is the hutong?” I told them “you’re in it now, it’s this whole neighborhood.” Their look of confusion was priceless.

With the future of the 胡同 (hútòng) in flux, it’s a word on every Beijinger’s lips. But what exactly is the hutong? The word is actually derived from the Mongolian hudeg, or “water well.” Starting in the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), back when Genghis Khan and his massive empire ruled over China, whole neighborhoods were designed around the hudeg, as they formed the primary source of water for each community.

Over time, the Chinese transliteration of hudeg, became hutong, and the word began referring to the alleyways between 四合院 (sìhéyuàn), or traditional Northern Chinese courtyard homes. These hutong were the arteries of Beijing, forming connections between the wide and moneyed lanes of areas around the Forbidden City, and the laborers outside of the first ring road.

In today’s common vernacular, the meaning has been further skewed, and now hutong means the entire neighborhood itself. Roads and lanes, siheyuan, historical rubble, family homes, small businesses, migrant worker dorms and 公共厕所 (gōnggòng cèsuǒ), or public toilets.

Like much of Beijing, the overwhelming majority of historical spaces in the hutong are gone. It’s also still unclear what this summer’s hutong “renovation” project will achieved. This project is a combination of four characters: 开墙打沟 (kāi qiáng dǎ dòng). Kaiqiang means to build a wall, and dadong means to create an opening. Both actions being very en vogue this season.

All is not lost. For the historical adventurer amongst us, poke around a bit around Gulou or Xisi and you can still see gorgeous 19th century landscape murals, and long forgotten rock gardens, now used to prop up mops and store cabbage. Maybe, just possibly, you’ll even stumble across the ruins of a hudeg, hidden near the chili plants and drying bitter melon in a granny’s courtyard garden.

Hutong Vocabulary 

– Hutong –  胡同

– “Build a wall, make an opening” campaign – Kāi qiáng dǎ dòng 开墙打洞

– Traditional northern Chinese house – sìhéyuàn 四合院

– Complicated maze-like yard – dàzáyuàn 大杂院

– Public toilets – gōnggòng cèsuǒ 公共厕所

– Weasel – huángshǔláng 黄鼠狼

– Hutong Convenience Store – xiǎomàibù 小卖部

– Demolish –  Chāi 拆

Photo: akdn.org

I’m not usually a fan of windowless restaurants. Nevertheless, there’s something immensely cozy about this one that makes me feel like I’m being wrapped up in a healthy womb of vegetarian goodness. Tucked into the back second floor of the Lido hotel with exquisite interior décor, 素直 Suzhi Vegetarian Restaurant (formerly “Pure Lotus”) is a hidden delicacy.

Let’s talk about the restaurant’s name. In Chinese, 素质 (su4zhi4) is the word for “character” or “quality” and is generally used to express the absence of it in someone’s behaviour in the same way that we express that something is “not classy” or is “classless.” 太没有素质了 （tai4mei2you3su4zhi4le0) is a very powerfully insulting thing to say to someone, especially a stranger, in response to such acts as (adult) public urination or absurdly loud public arguing.

Yet, their name is 素直. The first character, 素 (su4)  is the same as above. This also the word for vegetarian, extending from its base meaning of “element; basic; essential” just like vegetables are to the diet. The second character, while it has the same sound (different tone), is 直 zhi2, which means “continuously” as well as “simply; just”.

Thus, we have a delicious word play: Not only is the restaurant’s name literally translatable as: “Always Vegetarian” or “Simply Vegetarian”,  but through the play on words we are given the double entendre that by being vegetarian, one is embodying high moral character or class.

Love it. In my 27th year of vegetarianism, I claim a strong bias! 

You’ll be happy to learn that the food has been as mindfully considered as their name. Windows or not, this restaurant is definitely worthy of the investigative curiosity in your taste buds.

Photos: Courtesy of Ember Swift