Alinur Akylbekov, a 12-year-old fifth grader, shared his experience in caring for feathered friends. He created a birdhouse to help the birds during the cold season. “There are many birds in our area, and I find them very interesting. I often think about how they survive in winter when it snows or rains. Once, together with my grandfather Kanybek, we made a wooden house for them. I brought it to school and, after getting permission from the teachers, hung it on a tree in front of the educational institution. The next day, sparrows had already flown in, found it, and started to roost inside. We were very happy that we could help. Now in winter, they don’t freeze outside — they have their own home. We feed them bread and other products every day,” Alinur said.
During the conversation with the children, other amusing stories emerged. One of the students talked about a cat that lives near the school: “I don’t know how many years it has lived here, but whenever we gather outside, it always comes up to us. If you pet it and offer a piece of bread, it gets happy, as if its eyes are smiling. It seems that birds and animals also need care. This reminds us of our fate, as our school is a home for orphans and children left without parental care,” noted a student who introduced himself as S.
Nazmina Urmanbetova, a 10th-grade student, added that they are engaged in growing flowers in their classrooms. “I came from Naryn and have been studying here since the 4th grade. We have a beautiful and cozy classroom where we take care of various types of flowers. Like real gardeners, we loosen the soil, water, and clean the leaves,” she explained.
Biology teacher Bakyt Osmonkulova confirmed her words and expressed gratitude to the students for their initiative and hard work, as well as to the school administration. “The main goal of education in the 12-year cycle is to prepare children for life, to give them knowledge that they can apply in the future, rather than just filling their minds with rules and formulas,” she added.
Gulmira Sharshenbaeva, the school’s cook, noted that strict sanitary and hygiene standards are observed in the cafeteria to ensure proper nutrition for the children, and that the material and technical base meets modern requirements.
According to the director of the boarding school, Bakyt Alymbekov, the K. Tilebaliev institution is located in the rural district of Kurama in the Panfilov district and was founded in 1939. Currently, more than 160 orphans and children from all corners of the country, who are without parental care, study here.
“I myself studied at this school from the first grade and know very well the lives of the children here. Now, having received higher education and experience, I head the school, which I consider my home. All conditions for learning are created: there are classrooms, dormitories, recreation areas, a cafeteria, medical offices, and even a mini-football field. The main focus now is on improving the quality of education,” Bakyt Alymbekov said.
He noted that the appearance of the boarding school may seem ordinary, but inside are the fates of children with unique stories. “Here, care and warmth reign, which we give to the children. This is the constant work of more than 50 employees who work for the children with sadness in their eyes. This is the support of the state and sponsors, as well as hope for a better future for the next generations. The children greet guests with smiles and words: 'Welcome,' but in their eyes, you can see the expectation of something missing,” the director added.
