On the fast track to a head start : A visual ethnographic study of parental consumption of children’s play and learning activities in Hong Kong

Consumption and play activities are significant factors in children’s immediate and future educational and social development. This article examines four families regarding parental consumption and involvement in children’s play and learning activities. A major finding suggests that families’ growing access to economic and cultural resources can facilitate transfers of intergenerational capital outside schools and can strengthen children’s language skills, social skills, creativity, open-mindedness and self-regulation capacity. In turn, these outcomes help the children make institutional gains in their school careers.