New semester begins in quake-hit region

A new semester began on Monday in 231 makeshift schools in southwest China's Yunnan province, where a 6.5-magnitude earthquake killed more than 600 people on Aug 3.

In Longquan Middle School at Longtoushan Township, the epicenter of the quake, more than 3,000 students attended psychological counseling during their first class period.

In a seventh-grade class, students were given a piece of white paper and crayons and were asked to express their anxiety on paper and vent their negative emotions.

About 100 teachers received psychological counseling training before school started by the Institute of Psychology with the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The institute will carry out psychological assistance in Ludian for a year, said Wu Kankan, who is in charge of the program.

Students will also receive training on safety, fire prevention, earthquake prevention and disaster reduction before they fully resume their lessons.

About 80,000 students in Ludian resumed classes on Monday, according to Tie Faping, head of the county education bureau.