BEIJING -- President Xi Jinping on Wednesday visited a school in Beijing ahead of International Children's Day, which falls on June 1.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, stressed the all-round development of children in the new era, and extended festival greetings to children across the country.

During his visit to Beijing Yuying School, Xi said children are the future of the country and the hope of the nation. He emphasized the importance of children's sound moral grounding, intellectual ability, physical vigor, aesthetic sensibility and work skills.