SAITAMA -- Many public elementary and junior high schools in Saitama Prefecture held their second-term opening ceremonies Monday, after summer vacations cut short to make up for earlier school closures caused by the coronavirus outbreak.
Saitama Municipal Tsubasa Elementary School had a 16-day summer vacation from Aug. 1. To avoid crowding, it opted not to hold its opening ceremony in the school's gym -- instead, school principal Shintaro Takada addressed the roughly 1,150 students via the TVs in each classroom.
Students responded cheerfully to the speech in a first-grade classroom. "[My family and I couldn't go on our trip overseas, but] I had fun going to the zoo with my friends. I want to get better at the climbing bar this term," said a 7-year-old member of the class.
Municipal elementary and junior high schools in Yokohama and Kawasaki also reopened on Monday.
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