‘Teachers excited to meet students, too’

Students take part in the yoga session. Pic/Sameer Markande

Students and teachers of the Smt. Sulochanadevi Singhania School at Thane were excited to start physical classes on Monday. Everything was perfectly co-ordinated by the school with COVID-19 protocols in place and staff and teachers monitoring the situation closely. The school opened only for Std XII students to start with, since other students are occupied with semester exams and tests. The attendance was over 80 per cent.

At 10 am, students started entering the school premises maintaining social distance, through a single gate. At the entry point, their temperature was checked with thermal guns and were guided by staff to the respective segregated rooms on different floors.

"We have limited the normal 42 students' class into batches of 20 students each with separate desks for each, to maintain distance. Every student has been told to wear a mask compulsorily, maintain safe distance from others and follow the regulations," Senior Manager Manish Narvekar said. The day started with yoga, simple breathing exercises and stretching sessions in a large hall with students maintaining social distance, followed by prayers and then the regular classes.

'A different experience'

"It is a big day as we are back at the school after such a long period and meeting friends and teachers is all together a different experience. The school has also been very careful in giving us instructions and making smaller batches as per protocols," said an excited student, Atharva Purohit. His classmate Upasna Nandi, who came from Deonar, said she was dropped off by her parents. "There was no stress, we were looking forward to schools reopening. It feels so lively to be here," she said.