VOA教育报道2024--Ukraine's Children Celebrate First Day of School, But Missiles Still Fly

Schoolchildren in the southern Ukrainian city Zaporizhzhia celebrated¹ the traditional first day of school on Sunday. The ceremonies began just hours after warnings of Russian air raids³ sounded through the city.

Zaporizhzhia 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.

Russian artillery⁴ and missiles strike there so often that local officials were forced to ban large gatherings⁵. Only students starting their first and last years could take part in the ceremony.

The Associated Press is not identifying the school for security reasons.

Limited space in shelter

The children wore traditional Ukrainian clothing and carried flowers. Each first year student held the hand of a final year student in a small parade.

The school once had 800 students but about 300 fled the city seeking safer places. The remaining children alternate⁶ 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.

That 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.

Lessons held underground

"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 raid² alarms in the bunker," he said.

Sunday's ceremony went on without problems.

Olha 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.

"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 joyful⁷."

Russia 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.

Words in This Story

despite - prep. in defiance⁸ or contempt⁹ of; without being prevented by

bunker - n. a strong building that is mostly below ground and that is used to keep people safe from attacks

alarm - n. a device that makes a loud sound as a warning or signal

grader - n. US: a student in a particular grade in school

alternate - v. to place or do (different things) so that one follows the other in a repeated series

1 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

2 raid   

v.劫掠，攫取，袭击，突击搜捕；n.突然袭击

参考例句：

• Our house was blown up in an air raid.在一次空袭中我们的房子被炸掉了。
• During their raid on the house,the police found a lot of drugs.在对这所房子的搜查中，警方发现了大量的毒品。

3 raids   

突然袭击( raid的名词复数 )； 劫掠，劫夺； 突然查抄[搜捕]

参考例句：

• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。
• We can annoy the enemy by raids. 我们可以用空袭骚扰敌人。

4 artillery   

n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队)

参考例句：

• This is a heavy artillery piece.这是一门重炮。
• The artillery has more firepower than the infantry.炮兵火力比步兵大。

5 gatherings   

聚集( gathering的名词复数 )； 收集； 采集； 搜集

参考例句：

• His conduct at social gatherings created a lot of comment. 他在社交聚会上的表现引起许多闲话。
• During one of these gatherings a pupil caught stealing. 有一次，其中一名弟子偷窃被抓住。

6 alternate   

adj.交替的，间隔的；v.（使）轮流　　

参考例句：

• He and I clean our room on alternate days.我和他隔日轮流打扫我们的房间。
• That was a week of alternate rain and sunshine.那是晴雨天交替的一周。

7 joyful   

adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的

参考例句：

• She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。
• They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

8 defiance   

n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗

参考例句：

• He climbed the ladder in defiance of the warning.他无视警告爬上了那架梯子。
• He slammed the door in a spirit of defiance.他以挑衅性的态度把门砰地一下关上。

9 contempt   

n.轻视，藐视，受辱，丢脸

参考例句：

• She looked at him with immediate and undisguised contempt.她用毫不掩饰的轻蔑眼光看着他。
• He refused to answer in contempt of the rules of the court.他藐视法院规章，拒绝回答。