27 September is Russia’s nationwide Day of Preschool Teachers and All Preschool Workers, intended to encourage society to pay greater attention to kindergartens and preschool childhood.
It was established in 2004 on the initiative of several Russian educational publications, with support from authors of many core preschool programmes, kindergarten teachers and parents. The date marks the opening of the first kindergarten in St Petersburg in 1863. Russian Government Order No. 703-r of 18 April 2016 established the celebration at state level, which "will help enhance the prestige of preschool educators and other specialists, in line with state policy priorities for protecting childhood and developing social institutions".
Preschool age is a particularly important and formative period in a child's life, when personality develops and the foundations of health are laid. A happy childhood and every child's future depend on the educator's wisdom, patience and attention to the child's inner world. With their educators' help, preschoolers discover the world around them and learn to love and care for their homeland.