On my journey to find out how Pushkin is still taught in the schools, I visited School No. 171 in St. Petersburg. This is one of the better schools in the city, located in a prestigious neighborhood (along Liteiniy Prospekt) in the center of town. The teacher had her students prepare for the occasion. One by one the students went to the front of the room (where “My Pushkin” was written on the blackboard) and quoted a verse by heart, and then discussed the meaning of what they had just quoted. 
Although I didn’t get the spontaneity of a regular classroom, watching the students excitedly quote Pushkin was worth seeing. Afterwards, they bombarded me and I autographed each student’s notebook.
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It reminds me that last year before Christmas I told my grandson that I want a certain present from him for Christmas. I handed him printouts of “У Лукоморья дуб зеленый …” и Парус Лермонтова and said that I want him to quote these poems for me by heart on Christmas Eve. His mother and him worked hard but he did it. It was nice. I tell him a lot about Pushkin, we read together all he was able to understand.