June 4, 2015 Following the devastating earthquake on April 25th which claimed over eight thousand lives, thousands of children in Nepal have bravely returned to school. Schools across the country formally reopened on the 1st of June.
Many schools were either destroyed or badly damaged in the quake and so lessons took place mostly in temporary classrooms made with bamboo or in tents on playing fields. Some children had classes in buildings that had been marked “safe” by engineers.
A parent, Shrestha whose son has been really traumatized said “Aftershocks are still continuing. It is difficult not to be nervous about sending the children to school again, but the teachers have assured us that it is safe here, and at least his mind will be fresh if he meets his friends and studies,”
Nine-year-old Muskan Bajracharya said “We’ve been staying home for so long, it is nice to play here and meet my friends again,”
Older children have been encouraged to talk about the quake or share stories about what happened to their families as part of efforts to help them adjust.
A principal, Govinda Poudel said “We are not holding any formal classes and have trained the teachers to help the children overcome the trauma of the quake and adjust to (being back at) school,”