Displaced children get warm welcome

CHENGDU: Shen Yonghong could not hold back her tears as all the 55 students in class five of grade four in Paotongshu Primary School here stood up and applauded to welcome her 10-year-old daughter Han Wenjing to become a temporary member of their class.

Han, a fourth grader from Beijie Primary School in Dujiangyan, about 40 km from Chengdu, had come to the provincial capital of Sichuan with her mother Shen, a 33-year-old saleswoman. They arrived here two days after the earthquake, which left both her home and school in a precarious condition, and moved into the house of Shen's friend near Paotongshu.

"As all primary and high schools in Chengdu were to resume classes on May 19, I have brought my daughter to Paotongshu to see if she can temporarily join grade four," Shen said.