All Beijing students set to return in June

As Beijing's COVID-19 epidemic control and prevention work becomes routine, the capital's education commission released the timetable of school resumption for all grades on Wednesday.

According to the commission, students in Beijing will gradually return to campus in June.

"The students in the final year of senior high school returned to campus in late April, and those in their final year of junior high school just returned on Monday, which has been welcomed by students, teachers and parents," said Li Yi, spokesman for the Beijing Municipal Education Commission, at a news conference on Wednesday afternoon.

Measures involving disinfection, transportation and temperature monitoring were taken to ensure the order and safety of school resumption in past weeks.

Based on those experiences, other grades will gradually return to school after four months' leave due to the outbreak.

According to the plan, students in Grade 6 in primary school, as well as all junior high and senior high school students, will go back to school starting June 1.

Students in Grade 4 and Grade 5 will resume class on June 8, and those in Grade 1 to Grade 3 should get prepared for school openings and await further notice.

The commission predicted that around 217,000 children will enter primary schools this year in Beijing.

The authority has provided online service for parents to register their children or make other inquiries in order to reduce infection risks by face-to-face contact.

The kindergartens in the capital can start operation on June 8, but parents can decide whether to send their children.

Some parents who both have resumed work are eager to send their little ones back to kindergarten because they have had to ask their own parents to help babysit, which has caused inconvenience.

Meanwhile, some other parents don't plan to send their children back to kindergarten because of health concerns.

"I will keep my 4-year-old daughter at home for a few more weeks," said a mother surnamed Wang, who works at home for a media company at present. "I know that the situation is good enough, but I still want my kid to be less exposed to the public, especially in places where there will be a lot of contact with others."

Colleges in Beijing are allowed to start classes on June 6 provided they have epidemic control and prevention capabilities.

Lin Lei, a student who attends college in Beijing, said he wants to go back to campus so much.

"The time at home is boring, and I believe my parents are already bored with me. I need to go back," he joked.

On April 27, around 50,000 students in their final year of senior high school returned to class in Beijing, and about 80,000 students in their final year of junior high schools in Beijing went back to campuses on May 11.