In Pictures

First school bell rings for refugee children in Greece

Nearly 1,500 refugee children in Greece attended school for the first time since safely arriving in the country.

Refugee children wait in line to receive backpacks for their first day of school. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

13 Oct 2016

Athens, Greece – Children from five refugee camps across Greece attended local schools this autumn. On Monday, October 10, students of all ages queued up behind the camp gates and waited for the chartered buses scheduled to transport them to nearby schools to arrive at 2pm.

The Greek Ministry of Education did not make a public announcement of the list of participating schools because some parents’ associations had mounted protests against the government plans.

But, at 2nd Tavros Elementary School in Athens, neighbours waited outside for more than an hour to greet the children when they got off the bus at 3pm, meeting them with warm applause and cheers. The Greek students welcomed the refugee children with songs and drawings.

On their first day refugee students stayed at school for only two hours, but their daily schedule will run from 2pm to 6pm. The children will have special classes to include Greek language courses, in addition to English, maths and arts, until they are sufficiently fluent in Greek to be able to join the main school programme.

The government aims to make schooling available for all refugee children in Greece.

MORE: The desperate journeys of refugees

Children of different ages and nationalities queue to board the five chartered buses scheduled to take them to school at 2pm.[Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

A girl finds comfort in her mother’s embrace while a young boy cannot contain his enthusiasm. More than anything, he wants to know if his school has a basketball court. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

Backpacks come in a number of colours. Books are still to be dispatched to schools for refugee children. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

A boy looks through the window of the bus that will take him to his new school. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

A younger sibling waves happily at her brother, who is off to school. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

An eager student has already written her name on her new notebook. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

Young boys wait for their friends to board the bus. By the time they return, they will be schoolmates. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

Refugee teenagers on their way to high school. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

Thirty refugee children crossed the entrance of 2nd Tavros Elementary School on Monday, October 10. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

Teachers and neighbourhood residents greeted the new students with warm applause. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

Young students take their first break in the school’s courtyard and sing a popular Greek children’s song they have just learned. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

Boys and girls of different ages celebrate their return to school with pencils and notebooks in their hands. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

Students examine their new gear during recess. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

With their backpacks filled with school supplies and welcome treats, students return to the refugee camps. [Dimitris Sideridis/Al Jazeera]

Related