"Don't shy away and maintain eye contact." Schoolchildren are told about "bad Ukrainians," taught how to behave with "heroes of the SVO," and forced to participate in military games. 

How does war propaganda influence children? Schoolchildren and their parents interviewed by The Insider tell about endless "military-patriotic" events.

So, to schoolchildren from Vladivostok organized a “Day on the Front Line,” and children from Balashikha near Moscow — the game "Young Hero": both were taught to load machine guns, put on gas masks, and provide first aid.

To school in Kemerovo region A member of the SVO arrived, but he remained silent. "Some girl spoke for him," says tenth-grader Nastya. Specifically, this girl told the children "that there's no need to be afraid of SVO members; they're people just like us, and it's important to maintain eye contact when talking to them and not to shy away from them on the street."

Teachers themselves are often confused by "patriotic" content. For example, Dmitriy, a ninth-grader of one of Kazan schools, says that his class teacher, while talking about the causes of the war, suddenly became confused in her own versions:

"In September, she [the teacher] said that we attacked to cleanse Ukraine of Nazis, and two or three months later, she said that we are now fighting for some kind of mineral resources that are in the Zaporizhzhia region and other occupied territories."At the same time, according to Dmitry, the teacher doesn't want to send her loved ones to the front: “She says: ‘I will not let my son and husband go.’”

Some parents are homeschooling their children, while others are quietly sabotaging "patriotic" events. But parents say it's very difficult to resist the constant stream of propaganda.