Primary school students met the prime minister on the school grounds. Mr Putin greeted the kids and followed them into the school.

On the first floor he entered the handicrafts class where students showed off their woodworking and clay projects. The prime minister signed their wooden blanks and had a picture taken with children. After that he walked to the fourth floor where the students were studying physics. Mr Putin’s escort told him that even the youngest of this school’s students took elementary physics and chemistry. The fourth-floor hall has been turned into a science lab with laptops and Lego Education sets.

The kids told the prime minister they were learning the properties of water and showed him some of the experiments they were making in the process.

Mr Putin examined the school’s electronic log – a server where all of the students’ tests and lab projects are stored in digital format, including grade’s and teacher comments.

“That’s great!” the prime minister said. “The parents can also be involved to get an insight into the teaching process.”

After that the prime minister visited the school’s film studio where students make cartoons. They showed him several of their videos.

This state comprehensive school was established in 1936. Its graduates include poet Andrei Voznesensky, Father Alexander Men, and film director Andrei Tarkovsky. At present, its teaching strategy is a combination of Russia’s classic education model and content with innovative teaching approaches mixed in. The teaching process focuses on the child’s individual needs and progress.

The school’s student body currently numbers 382, including children with disabilities. It employs 44 teachers, some of them with advanced academic degrees.