Moscow Times article

[alektoeumenides.livejournal.com]

Ringing In the New School Year

By Michele A. Berdy

Первый звонок: the first bell, the start of the school year; also "the first harbinger"

In Russia Sept. 1 is the first day of school, also called День Знаний (Day of Knowledge)and commonly referred to as Первый звонок -- "the first bell." There's a lot of touching pomp and ceremony, especially for the first-graders (первоклассники). Kids get dressed up in their school finest -- девочки с бантиками, мальчики в костюмах (girls with bows in their hair, boys in suits), carrying fresh new book bags and bouquets of flowers for their teachers. The schoolchildren form lines by class in front of the school, like little princes and princesses on their way to an inauguration. This is called (праздничная or торжественная) линейка -- a "(ceremonial) line" (линейка is also the word you use for that school bag must, a ruler).

It's also helpful to know that первый звонок can refer to "the first harbinger" of something, often not very pleasant. Сразу после свадьбы он ушёл в запой. Это был первый звонок. Дальше -- хуже. (Right after the wedding he went off on a bender. That was the first harbinger. It only got worse.)

Understanding and translating school expressions can be a bit tricky, since the educational systems in the United States and Russia are in many ways quite different. Начальная школа is elementary or grade school (literally "beginning school"), followed by средняя школа (high school). The school principal is директор школы (literally the school director), but despite the slight differences in title, on both sides of the ocean these are either figures of terrifying authority or comforting parental support. The kids are either ученики, учащиеся, or школьники (pupils or schoolchildren). In Russian schools they sit behind a desk made for two, called парта, a term often used to refer to school years. Мы знаем друг друга очень давно -- сидели за одной партой! (We've know each other for ever -- we went to grade school together, literally, "we sat next to each other at the same desk.")

In Russian schools, grades are given in numbers, five being the highest grade and one being so low it's hardly ever used. Моя Соня -- круглая пятёрочница! (My Sonya is a straight-A student!, "she gets fives all around, in all subjects") Ваня -- троечник. (Vanya is C-student; Vanya is a mediocre/average student.) А Вася -- двоечник! (Vasya is a D-student.) For some reason -- maybe because it would be too hard to pronounce -- no one says "четвёрочник" for B-student -- this is хорошист (a "good" one). You can also call an A-student отличник (an "excellent" one.)

These evaluating expressions don't disappear with adulthood. You can tell a subordinate: Я прочитал ваш отчёт. Двоечник! (I read your report. You did a bad job!) А отчёт Юлии -- очень хорош! Юлия -- отличница. (But Julia's report is very good. Julia -- you did a great job.) Because Russian schoolchildren stand to reply to questions, the teacher responds, Садись. Пятёрка! (Sit down -- you get an "A.") You can also use this phrase jokingly with your adult friends an colleagues: -- Я вымыл все полы и окна. -- Садись. Пять! ("I washed all the floors and windows." "You may be seated! You get an "A"!)

Most kids attend local schools, but some go to magnet schools. These are профильные школы ("specialized" schools) or, more common, спецшколы. Я закончил английскую спецшколу. (I went to a special school for English.) Other kids attend школа-интернат, a "boarding school," although this is generally not a prestigious prep school, but rather a school for kids with special needs or for kids whose parents can't care for them. In recent years лицей (lycee) and гимназия (classical school) have appeared -- these are closer to the U.S. institution of "preparatory schools": private (and expensive) schools, where the conditions are better and teaching (supposedly) more rigorous.

In many families Sept. 1 is a holiday, particularly when their child is starting the first grade. We can only hope that this happy tradition will be resumed next year.


Michele A. Berdy is a Moscow-based translator and interpreter.