Schools for children of migrant workers can be found all across the outskirts of Beijing. They are privately organized and funded by migrant workers trying to provide their children with the most basic education. Conditions at these schools are far from ideal due to a lack of funding as, other than state schools, these institutions are not recognised by the government and do not qualify for state support.

To help ease these pressures the Hutong School organizes teaching excursions to one of these schools in Beijing’s north every other Sunday. Although the main goal of these excursions is to teach the children basic English, participants quickly realize that there is much more to this trip than just the study of grammar and vocabulary. What may start out as an interesting way to explore Beijing beyond the city centre oftentimes leads to a genuinely heart-warming experience where children and teachers alike join in game, song, dance… if possible in English. This, however, becomes secondary as soon as you step through the school gates anyway: the real experience lies in understanding how much one can give with just a little bit of good intention.