Ukraine's Children Celebrate First Day of School, But Missiles Still Fly
2024-09-04
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1Schoolchildren in the southern Ukrainian city Zaporizhzhia celebrated the traditional first day of school on Sunday.
2The ceremonies began just hours after warnings of Russian air raids sounded through the city.
3Zaporizhzhia is just 40 kilometers from the war's front.
4That danger is never far from the minds of teachers and families at one of the city's schools.
5Russian artillery and missiles strike there so often that local officials were forced to ban large gatherings.
6Only students starting their first and last years could take part in the ceremony.
7The Associated Press is not identifying the school for security reasons.
8The children wore traditional Ukrainian clothing and carried flowers.
9Each first year student held the hand of a final year student in a small parade.
10The school once had 800 students but about 300 fled the city seeking safer places.
11The remaining children alternate one week of study at school with one week of online study.
12That is because the school's bomb shelter can hold only around 250 people.
13That shelter is about 75 meters away from the main school building, across an open playground.
14School director Kostiantyn Lypskyi said the youngest students work in a classroom just above the underground shelter.
15The rest of the school operates in the main building.
16"We prepared everything for the new school year. We equipped the bunker in case of air alarms, so children will have a safe space because our school will continue lessons during the air raid alarms in the bunker," he said.
17Sunday's ceremony went on without problems.
18Olha Komarova-Lesko is the mother of an 11th grader and a 6th grader.
19She said she was hopeful for the coming school year. She sees it as the best solution for the present conditions.
20"We are happy that the children had the chance to go to the celebration today just as in the prewar times," she said, "This is really exciting and joyful."
21Russia launched large numbers of missiles and drones on the capital Kyiv Monday, wounding three people and damaging schools.
22On Tuesday, Russian missiles killed at least 41 people and wounded over 180 in Poltova, a city in the central eastern part of Ukraine.
23I'm Caty Weaver.
1Schoolchildren in the southern Ukrainian city Zaporizhzhia celebrated the traditional first day of school on Sunday. The ceremonies began just hours after warnings of Russian air raids sounded through the city. 2Zaporizhzhia is just 40 kilometers from the war's front. That danger is never far from the minds of teachers and families at one of the city's schools. 3Russian artillery and missiles strike there so often that local officials were forced to ban large gatherings. Only students starting their first and last years could take part in the ceremony. 4The Associated Press is not identifying the school for security reasons. 5Limited space in shelter 6The children wore traditional Ukrainian clothing and carried flowers. Each first year student held the hand of a final year student in a small parade. 7The school once had 800 students but about 300 fled the city seeking safer places. The remaining children alternate one week of study at school with one week of online study. That is because the school's bomb shelter can hold only around 250 people. 8That shelter is about 75 meters away from the main school building, across an open playground. School director Kostiantyn Lypskyi said the youngest students work in a classroom just above the underground shelter. The rest of the school operates in the main building. 9Lessons held underground 10"We prepared everything for the new school year. We equipped the bunker in case of air alarms, so children will have a safe space because our school will continue lessons during the air raid alarms in the bunker," he said. 11Sunday's ceremony went on without problems. 12Olha Komarova-Lesko is the mother of an 11th grader and a 6th grader. She said she was hopeful for the coming school year. She sees it as the best solution for the present conditions. 13"We are happy that the children had the chance to go to the celebration today just as in the prewar times," she said, "This is really exciting and joyful." 14Russia launched large numbers of missiles and drones on the capital Kyiv Monday, wounding three people and damaging schools. On Tuesday, Russian missiles killed at least 41 people and wounded over 180 in Poltova, a city in the central eastern part of Ukraine. 15I'm Caty Weaver. 16Lori Hinnant reported this story for the Associated Press. Jill Robbins adapted it for Learning English. 17_______________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19despite - prep. in defiance or contempt of; without being prevented by 20bunker - n. a strong building that is mostly below ground and that is used to keep people safe from attacks 21alarm - n. a device that makes a loud sound as a warning or signal 22grader - n. US: a student in a particular grade in school 23alternate - v. to place or do (different things) so that one follows the other in a repeated series 24What do you think of this story? Write to us in the Comments Section.