Underdressed pupils perform for cozy leaders   

小学迎接领导检查要求孩子深秋穿夏装表演(图)

Students wearing summer clothes at a late-autumn outdoor performance.

(ECNS) -- A primary school in Shaanxi province has chilled some of its students by asking them to wear summer clothes for a late-autumn outdoor performance, the Xi'an-based Huashang Daily reports.

Reporters went to the Guozhen primary school in Baoji after receiving a tip from a parent, and found that many pupils who were about to perform were wearing thick coats over their summer costumes, which included skirts for girls and shorts for boys.

A second-grade girl said she would take off her coat for the performance, despite the cold. Her grandmother and another parent were worried that the children might get ill after wearing such thin clothes in the chilly weather.

A fifth-grade student said that after so many rehearsals, they all looked forward to the performance and didn't care about wearing summer clothes. "It's just several minutes," he said.

The afternoon performance started with several girls in skirts lying prone on the ground, while school leaders sat in the center of the playground wearing thick coats.

A deputy headmaster surnamed Chen said the performance was part of an "achievement showcase," and that they had chosen Monday out of consideration for the weather.

He also said the girls might not get cold because of the rubberized surface of the playground.