The clock struck 1:25 p.m., and six fifth-graders at Minami Elementary School in Yokohama headed for lavatories carrying brushes, mops, dustpans and toilet paper.
The three boys and three girls, each in a separate lavatory, scrubbed the toilets, mopped the floors and refilled the toilet paper holders, wrapping up their task with a review session at 1:45 p.m.
They appear used to the chore that six months earlier they never would have expected to perform.