Inside bomb-proof classrooms in underground bunkers as Ukrainian schoolkids head back for new term

UKRAINIAN kids are being taught inside bomb-proof classrooms in underground bunkers as they head back to school for the new term. Schools in Ukraine have welcomed pupils back to bunkers kitted out with desks, toys and blankets as Russian forces continue to pound the war-torn country. NewsflashSchools have welcomed pupils back to bunkers kitted out with desks, toys and blankets[/caption] NewsflashVolodymyr Zelensky sits with schoolkids in Irpen, Ukraine[/caption] NewsflashColourful desks fill an underground bunker in Poltava region[/caption] NewsflashDesks and chairs stand in a corridor in a bunker of a school in Poltava region[/caption] Six million Ukrainian children returned to school on Thursday, with parents asked to choose between remote or in-person teaching. And only schools which don’t face a regular threat of bombing from Putin’s troops will reopen. Where schools can open their doors, teachers have transformed basements into bomb shelters and have been trained on what to do in case of an attack. Kids who come to the classroom must also carry an emergency bag with a change of clothes. Read more on the Ukraine war IN SHORT SUPPLY Putin's latest decision to cut gas flows has sparked FEARS of shortages RED OCTOBER Russia moves ‘nuclear submarine’ into Med for NATO showdown over Ukraine Sharing bleak images of the new underground classrooms, Dmytro Lunin, the governor of the Poltava region in central Ukraine, said the safety of pupils remains their top priority. “Poltava is ready for the start of the academic year in various formats. Parents choose the form of education,” he said. “Our priority remains unchanged – safety. Thanks to Ukrainian defenders, children in Poltava region can study online and offline.” Lunin said the process of bomb-proofing schools across the region is in “full swing”. Most read in News HIT AND RUN Moment biker sent flying through the air in horror crash - before driver flees DEVIL DOG ATTACK Five people hurt after being mauled by out of control Rottweiler in park JEREMY CLARKSON Shambolic Festival Of Brexit proves why the govt should never run anything CRUISE SHIP HORROR Brit, 15, 'sexually assaulted' during family holiday on luxury cruise BARCA HORROR Moment Brit is stabbed while fighting off mugger who took bag in Barcelona FLIGHTMARE Watch as woman who 'told crew "I'll put you in hospital"' is marched off flight “There are 533 schools in the region – 160 of them are ready, and about 130 more in the process of preparation,” he said. “The district and communities are doing everything right now to make sure schools have the right shelter. “The children’s safety comes first.” President Volodymyr Zelensky visited a school on Thursday which was damaged in March by the Russians and will now welcome 1,300 pupils back. He inspected the school’s basement – which has been “set up to shelter students during air raids”. “We are working to ensure that every Ukrainian war-damaged educational institution resumed operations, and our children were safe and nothing prevented them from gaining knowledge,” he said. It comes after students and teachers in Borodianka, a town just north of Kyiv, returned to their school this week to find it had been trashed by Russian soldiers. The teachers found the soldiers had used classrooms as toilets, left rubbish everywhere and destroyed whiteboards, PE equipment, TVs and computers, The Guardian reports. They also plastered the walls with anti-Ukraine and pro-Russia graffiti and dug trenches behind the school. Almost all of the school’s windows have been covered with sheets of plastic after being blown out by missile strikes. Read More on The Sun SAVVY SAVERS Mums are sharing ‘ingenious’ ways they’re save money, including cheap presents money maker I quit office job & make £32k a month from side hustle but pals have shunned me Inna Romaniuk, the headteacher, said the school was in the process of being fixed up and they hoped to reopen next year. Ukraine’s prosecutor general said 2,300 schools and colleges have been hit by the Russians since the start of the war in February, with 286 destroyed. NewsflashChairs and toys stand in a bunker of a kindergarten in Poltava region of Ukraine[/caption] NewsflashKids must carry an emergency bag with a change of clothes when they come to school[/caption]