The text of the tour  1 ( school)
Plan
1. In front of the main staircase
2. The staircase
3. 2nd floor ( portraits)
4. Assembly hall
5. Computer class
6. Biology class
7. Observatory
8. The large auditorium
9. Museum
1.In front of the main staircase.
Dear guests,
Welcome to one of the oldest and the most beautiful educational institutions of Russia. Not each school possesses such a rich history and such a big quantity of outstanding alumni. In different periods of time our school had different names. Before the Great October revolution of 1917 the school was called Kekin male gymnasium, during Soviet time it was V.I. Lenin School, and now it is A. L. Kekin gymnasium of Rostov.
 You can see a memorial plaque in the lobby. It was opened in 2009 to mark the 20th anniversary of Soviet troops withdrawal from Afghanistan and in commemoration of our school graduates who died during their military duty in Afghanistan. They are Igor Chikunov and Vyacheslav Bandorin. To the right is Yuri Kachurin. Killed in Chechnya.
Annually on September, 1, the new generation of students, gymnasium first graders, enter the school through this very entrance. On the Day of Gymnasium they are solemnly initiated into Gymnasium Community. 
Originally the building was calculated for 720 students to study in. Now we have 1200 students here. This is one of the largest schools of the Yaroslavl region.
 Here is the emblem of the school. It was designed by our teacher of art, and the headmaster, Danil  Brazhnikov.
The school premises are located on 3 floors. On the first floor we have  library, 2gyms, workshops and several classrooms.
Please note, that the main building of the school is connected with the smaller one. There were the apartments for the teachers and the headmaster before the revolution. Now the elementary graders study there. 
2. The staircase.
 Just like 100 years ago we can hear cheerful children voices here. Look at the huge windows, and the majestic chandeliers. During the special celebrations the marble stairs are covered with beautiful carpets with the help of these fixtures and we get into a palace, where there are balls and romantic stories. 
This memorial plaque is dedicated to Alexander Gavrilov, a poet and our graduate. Four books of his were published. They are " The Premonition of love"; "Running light"; "My beautiful land"; "Star fissure". 
Another book was published with the help of our students in 2009 already after Alexander Gavrilov death. Ever since in January, on Alexander Gavrilov birthday, we have Gavrilov readings in the commemoration of the poet and our school alumnus.
 On the opposite wall there are memorial plaques to the Soviet Union Heros, graduated from our school. These are pilots Alexander Davydov and Boris Eremin, and a trooper Konstantin Tulupov. And this is the funeral list of the teachers and graduates who never return from the fronts of the great Patriotic war.
The second floor is the face of the school. Here are the symbols of Russia and the coat of arms of Rostov. Those who graduated with honors are listed on these commemorative plaques and there are a lot of them throughout the 100-year history of the school. Right next there is the list of the students who won regional or national competitions and their teachers’ names.
3. The portraits (2nd floor)
These are the portraits of the school founders.
The history of the school begins in 1885, when after the death of the only son, Rostov merchant and philanthropist Alexey L. Kekin makes his testament and passes all of his property to Rostov community. The first point of his will is to establish a gymnasium in Rostov and a University at the earliest opportunity. 
This is the portrait of the first headmaster, Sergey Moravsky. He was a historian and a teacher from Moscow. He was the one who employed the first teaching staff. He drafted the Charter of the gymnasium. He was respected and loved for his deep knowledge and humanity. In 2001 the street where our school is got his name.
4.Assembly hall
This is the Assembly hall where balls and concerts take place. There used to be icons here before the revolution where students could pray in the morning. A large formal portrait of the last Russian Emperor used to hang here.
 In 1936 the celebration of New Year coming was revived in the Soviet Union. (It was banned before). A huge New Year tree would be installed here and a masquerade or New Year performance would begin. The graduates of the 1950s celebrated New Year coming at school on the night from December, 31 to January, 1, together with their teachers. Everyone had to wear a carnival costume. We read their reminiscence and envy: there were literary and fairy-tale characters, competitions and games, dancing would not stop until morning.
5. Computer Class
This is one of our computer classes (No. 217). There are 3 of them in the school.  All of the computers were donated by an alumnus of the year 1985, Andrew Baronov. There are more than 100 computers all in all; also we have local network, and Internet access. Computer science is taught throughout grades 2 -11.
6. Biology Class
Many of our our classrooms are equipped with such interactive whiteboards. Modern technologies are actively used in teaching: multimedia projects. distant training, etc.
7. Observatory
We climb the stairs to get into the Observatory building. Unfortunately, only the stand of the original telescope remained. But we were presented with modern telescopes. One of them was installed here a year ago. And now the students watch stars and planets, just like 100years ago. Some our alumni became world-wide famous astronomers. That happened thanks to this observatory and highly qualified teachers. There are 4 observatories in Yaroslavl region. This is one of them.
8. The  large auditorium.
This is our large auditorium.Originally it was used as physics and natural science class. Different meetings were held here during Soviet Union time. Now we use it for different purposes. The Olympiads on different school subjects are held here as well as concerts, performances, festivals and meetings. The auditorium accommodates 300 people. It’s got good technical equipment. 
9. Museum
Finally we are in the school Museum... We’ve got materials on local history, school history and history of military glory here.
Here you can see some everyday objects of the past (cradle, samovars, spinning wheel). Devices used for physics classes in the old gymnasium are in the closet. There is also the first year book with the old photos of the first graduates here. (1914)
The walls tell about Gymnasium foundation and the people who stood at its roots. You’ve got acquainted with Mr. Kekin and Mr. Moravsky already. Here is the architect of the school, Pavel Trubnikov.  This magnificent building was erected after his project.
 There are many materials on the great Patriotic war here. The teachers and the pupils of the forties fought  at the front, and forged the victory in the rear. There are helmets, canteens, caps... letters, diary entries...At that time  the school housed a hospital. (Album).
These stands provide the information about the outstanding graduates. There are National artist of the Soviet Union among the graduates of the 30-ies, and a graduate of the very first Gymnasium year became a famous astronomer. His name was Alexander Mazaev. You can read about the law opened by him in the Great Soviet encyclopedia.
Here is a graduate of 2005, Pavel Kozlov, the winner of the international Olympiad in Math. Being a part of the Yaroslavl region delegation he was received by the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin. Later on Pavel graduated from Moscow state University and now teaches there.