Mrs. Lucy Awuni, Deputy Upper East Regional Minister on Tuesday asked teachers to let children attending school for the first time realize that school is a second home and should remain a comfortable environment for them as beginners.

Mrs. Awuni said fresh pupils attending school for the first time should be received with love and warmth in order to sustain their interest to remain in school as they grew up.

She said the children were leaving the care of their parents from the beginning and any attempt to be hostile to them could scare them away from school.

The deputy regional minister was addressing pupils and teachers at the Dulugu Primary school near Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region where 56 boys and 57 girls were attending school for the first time dubbed “My first day at School”.

She reiterated that school was a second home and should remain a comfortable place for the pupils for a good beginning.

Mr. Edward Ayagle, Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), who accompanied the Deputy Minister on the visits, noted that government placed high premium on education and said this was evident in the distribution of free exercise books, teaching and learning materials (TLMs) and the infrastructure it provided schools to ensure pupils had the best of education.

He asked the pupils to keep the habit of attending school all the time and presented soft drinks and biscuits to the new pupils.

Mr. David Paluah, Head of Programmes of AfriKids, a non-governmental organization made a donation of seven boxes of sandals to the freshers. He indicated that in the past, parents did not make efforts to ensure their children reported on reopening days and said first time in school was significant and marked the beginning of a bright future for the children.

He tasked parents to make the education of their children a priority in the family, adding that “My first day at school” was a signal that encouraged the pupils to know that lots of people cared about them.