Today’s lesson plan was simple yet poetic: inspired by Sergei Yesenin’s famous verses.

Little Artyom stared at his paper. He lived in a tall apartment building, and under his window, there was only a gray parking lot. But then he closed his eyes and remembered the park. He grabbed his brush.

"No," Artyom said proudly. "That’s the tree that’s waiting for us to come outside."

The sun hadn't quite cleared the horizon when Marina began setting up the "Senior Group" classroom. On each desk sat a fresh sheet of blue paper and a small pot of thick, white gouache.