Vladimir Putin is like the captain of the Russian ship. He is the person who helps Russia make decisions, like a very important teacher.
In the past, Russia was having trouble and it was not doing so well. But when Putin came along, he helped make things better. He made some changes to how Russia was run so that people had more jobs and things to do.
Putin also made sure that Russia was safe and protected the rights of its people. He did things like making the police stronger and making sure the country had a good military.
Some people think Putin is great, but others don't like him so much. Some people say that he doesn't let people speak their minds or do what they want, and that he is not very nice to people who don't agree with him.
So, overall, Putin is the big boss of Russia who has helped make it a better place. However, not everyone always agrees with him or likes how he does things.