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On the walls of this Bordeaux school, the names of the classes are written in Ukrainian.
Installed in disused school buildings at the Bastide since February 1, the association L'aile de l'Ange welcomes around sixty children, aged 3 to 16, every Wednesday and Saturday from 12:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
When the premises opened three weeks ago, "
many of them arrived closed and without speaking
", describes Ielyzaveta Daineko, its president.
For the most part educated in French schools where they struggle to overcome the language barrier and therefore "
to make friends
», these little refugees rediscover the joy of learning and playing in their mother tongue.
The objective is twofold: the teenagers, who understand the reality of the war which began on February 24, hope to return to their country as soon as possible and therefore lack the "
motivation
" to learn French, while the youngest, they are unlearning Ukrainian.
Inna Tkachenko, who fled Ukraine by car via kyiv with her husband and their three children at the instigation of their ten-year-old daughter, is behind this initiative.
His family notably lived in Vichy and Angoulême before arriving in Bordeaux in September to found this school.
A desire born of the communication difficulties encountered by his youngest daughter, Arina, 2 years old.
Here, in addition to language learning adapted to their age, her children now study mathematics, history, chemistry, biology, dance and the plastic arts, thus avoiding accumulating school delays.
Socialization workshops are also organized so that these uprooted children learn to develop new social interactions.
“Some mothers and their children are depressed”
“
The women came without their husbands or lost him.
We thought we would be there for a month or two.
It's been a year.
It's long.
Between the war and the separation, some of them, like their children, are depressed
,” confides the 30-year-old, who is trying to cheer them up.
With success.
Masha, 14, who arrived in April with her mother and sister, is "
happy and having fun here
".
Schooled in 3rd grade at the Saint Genès college and speaking bits of French, she confided in Le
Figaro
in her language in order to be able to express the complexity of her feelings.
Smiling mischievously as she answered our questions, she ended up making her translator hilarious.
"
She explains to me that she would send her family back to live without her in Ukraine, at the end of the war, to stay here.
She likes French architecture, especially that of Toulouse, and she feels freer here where the teachers are “cool” and give less homework
,” repeats Kristina Jay Kernistka, who has lived in France since 2012.
Some children, who come from kyiv, Mariupol or Donetsk, spoke Russian there daily and now refuse to do so.
Ielyzateva Daineko, president of the association L'aile de l'Ange
Mother of two children aged 1 and 4, she is also delighted with the existence of this establishment.
“
My calculation when I settled down was to bring my family to Ukraine every six months and it worked until the war.
From now on, the eldest who was bilingual answers me in French whatever the language in which I speak to him
, ”she describes.
So in this school, it is obviously the Ukrainian course that has the most success.
Especially since “
some children, who come from Kiev, Mariupol or Donetsk, spoke Russian there daily and now refuse to do so
”, explains Ielyzateva Daineko.
The wing of the Angel, Ukrainian school in Bordeaux
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War, a taboo subject for children
In the toddler class, Émile, Kristina Jay Kernistka's son, walks around with a book in his mother tongue, while little girls dance to a local nursery rhyme.
In the next room, board games await the older ones.
Formerly a life coach, Anna Podliesna, 47, tries to accompany them psychologically during these privileged moments that she oversees.
Only one subject is taboo: war.
"
It's hard to talk about it
," Masha admits, looking away.
However, from the large flags floating at the entrance (or pinned to the walls) to the drawing of a dove of peace under which is inscribed “
good luck
” posted in the hallway, everything reminds us of it.
“
During a class, a little one said to me, laughing: 'Dad, I don't know where he is, I think he's dead'.
It has also happened that a bigger one says: “I don't like Russians”
, testifies Isabelle Bastide, the only French teacher at this school.
In these situations, the reflections are considered by the fifteen teachers, who, in response, favor a reassuring discourse over the development of the subject.
Nevertheless, the suffering of these children is expressed.
Invited to choose and reproduce a painting by artist Kateryna Pryjmachenko, the plastic arts class for over 10s, led by Inna Tchachenko, selected a work entitled Atomic War be
cursed
.
On a black background, a red monster from which escape green snakes stands out from the canvas.
“
The children chose the colors
,” whispers their teacher with an eloquent look.
A refuge in the land of asylum
Taken refuge under the wing of the Angel in a land of asylum, this Ukrainian club-school still has everything to build.
Rolling up their sleeves, the mothers repaint the damaged walls of its premises graciously lent by the metropolis of Bordeaux.
The tables and chairs, offered by the town hall of Lège-Cap-Ferret, are furnished with supplies that its two founders are currently financing out of their own money.
Fixed at 160 euros per month for two days of lessons or daycare per week, the decreasing rate according to the number of children is too high for most members.
Only 20% of dues were paid in February.
If it is out of the question to refuse registrations for financial reasons, Ielyzaveta Daineko, who receives requests from parents planning to move to join them, already knows that the
institution will not be able to survive without a pool of donations and a French teacher who agrees to work on a voluntary basis.
Between cleaning products, equipment and paint, she already estimates her costs at 4,000 euros this month.
Especially since the premises are called upon to extend their functions.
Already used by parents who settle there on opening days to work for lack of space at home, they will also open one additional day a week from March to offer assistance with administrative procedures.
A resilience that reflects the intellectual and solidarity resistance that drives these women.
The steely blue gaze of Yuliia Borysenko, who teaches Ukrainian lessons with determination, transcribes it without saying a word.
She remains hopeful of an imminent return to the country.
In the meantime, like the mothers around her, she refuses that “
the children forget where they were born
”.