Lucknow, Sep 7 (IANS): There is some good news for school children in Uttar Pradesh. Those who are returning to school after almost 18 months will be eased into campus life and no tests will be held for them in the near future, said the government.

Director General School Education Anamika Singh, has instructed all basic education officers to ensure that teachers do not burden children with studies or tests, written or oral, to avoid stressful situations.

She stated that the children had a long break from studies and were also witness to the deadly coronavirus which had an adverse effect on their learning.

According to a state government directive, the teachers have instead been asked to extend 'emotional support' to children attending the government schools since classes resumed from September 1.

There are around 1.6 crore students enrolled in 1.59 lakh primary and upper primary schools in the state.

Teachers have been asked to emotionally strengthen kids by means of activities and games so that they adapt themselves to the academic environment.

Anamika Singh, who is also the basic education secretary, said that as per the fresh set of instructions on functioning of schools, there would be two hours of compulsory teaching for children in Classes 1 to 5, with one hour each dedicated to Hindi and mathematics.

In the remaining school hours, teachers will be required to engage kids in various sporting activities and motivate them to spend time reading books in the school library.

For upper primary classes (6 to 8) the teachers have been asked to focus on Hindi and mathematics in addition to science and English.

According to the directives, for the first two weeks, teachers must narrate moral stories to children to help them adapt to school surroundings. This will make them feel part of the teaching-learning process. She has also asked teachers to use formative ways to assess the skills of students and update it on the Prerna portal.