Daydream believers

Shen's attitude to her child's education is typical of many Chinese parents. They value diligence and studiousness, believing that if children do not spend most of their free time learning, they are wasting opportunities to secure a bright future.

However, a news conference organized by the Shanghai Municipal Health Commission at the end of June emphasized the importance of allowing children appropriate free time during the summer holiday. Experts suggested that parents should allow their children to do their own activities — even if it is daydreaming, doodling, or doing nothing — and reduce excessive parental intervention.

Free time has numerous benefits for children, such as stimulating creativity, developing problem-solving skills, and enhancing a child's ability to cope with negative emotions, according to experts.

"Giving children free time means letting them decide what to do for themselves. This kind of self-driven decision-making is more important than completing tasks assigned by parents. Children have the opportunity to think, decide, try, and adjust based on their own desires and interests," said Huang Xiang, a doctor at the neurosurgery department of Shanghai Huashan Hospital Affiliated to Fudan University.

"Such experience is about developing self-management skills and, on a larger scale, developing a form of independent thinking that allows individuals to explore, satisfy, and develop themselves based on their feelings, needs, and current resources rather than passively completing orders by others and waiting for rewards," he said.

Experts said helping children build such abilities will benefit them for their entire life. However, today's society, where children are often forced into "involution-style competitions", prevents some youngsters from enjoying free time.