Mainland babies in a class of their own when it comes to parental expectations

On a cold, wet Friday morning, only a third of the children turn up for the 45-minute class in Shanghai's Putuo district.

It's not as if the children can get there themselves. Junjun, the eldest, is just 21 months old. Nini, the youngest, is 19 months old.

Their young teacher begins the class by leading the children and various accompanying grandparents on a walk around the sides of a square painted on the ground.

The early education centre, which says its tuition is based on the theories of famed Italian educator Maria Montessori, says the exercise helps calm the children and concentrate their minds for learning.

The teacher then shows them how to stick coloured flowers on a paper vase, saying it can help them learn to recognise different colours. Next up, the children play with toys, including beads, cups, stuffed toys and toy bricks that they fetch from a shelf by themselves. The teacher plays with each of them occasionally before a group game that only Junjun seems to enjoy.

The class ends with the teacher asking each child to stand in front of the others and announce their name, age and gender.

It's just one of many similar sessions offered by an early education industry that is spreading rapidly across the mainland, despite experts cautioning that it might not deliver the results desired.