When the School is Transformed

Teacher: Iredir Vieira Máximo
School:E.E. DE ED. ESP. Teacher "Maria Corrêa Coutinho"
City: Ouro Branco - MG
Country: Brasil
Project: The importance of using the alphabet learning panels for teaching Special Education students at the Professora Maria Corrêa Coutinho Special Education School.

Matters like the comfort of the classrooms, accessibility and learning-conducive environments should be primary concerns at all schools.

In Ouro Branco, in the interior of Minas Gerais, the Maria Corrêa Coutinho Special Education School respects these requirements, and is recognized by the community for the opportunities it offers to students with varied special education needs. Recently a project was presented that helped to improve the lives of those who attend the institution, both students and teachers.

Overseen by the school’s principal, Iredir Vieira Máximo, the school environment underwent an important transformation, making it more beautiful, more comfortable and equipping it with technological resources that offer fun and stimulating activities for the students.

The Portuguese language classes really got the students involved with the Alphabet Learning Panel, and math became more accessible and fun with the Discovering Math software.

According to Iredir, with the learning tables, the classrooms are transformed into Learning Workshops. She observed that the learning tables made learning to read and write an activity that is pleasurable, fun and interesting.

For the students, the changes were significant. They were stimulated to work in groups. They learned to handle the mouse and the blocks. They developed their visual-motor coordination. They improved their attention and concentration. And an educational therapist accompanied all of these advances.

Among the many realizations made possible by the educational technology solutions, Iredir highlights what she considers to be the most important of all: the independence the students gained at a school that was transformed into a life lesson for all.