The Next Activity under the Project “A Place for Every Child” was Held within “Iglika” Kindergarten in City of Varna

Another activity was held within “Iglika ‘ Kindergarten, Varna, under Karin Dom’s “A Place for Every Child” project.

After a series of trainings on the topic “Creating a supportive educational environment”, in which educators and assistant educators from all 8 groups (including one nursery school) participated, Dimana Miteva-Naidenova, psychologist and trainer together with the team of educators, nurses and the specialists assigned to the kindergarten – a psychologist, a speech therapist, a resource teacher and a pedagogical advisor – conducted a workshop on visualizing the environment.

During this practical training, which took place on site at “Iglika” Kindergarten, the team together with the therapist-trainer developed visual timetables for all group rooms and the offices of individual specialists, as well as the sanitary rooms in the garden. This practicum is part of the MES training “Creating a supportive educational environment for children and students with special needs. Structuring and visualizing the environment”, upon completion of which teachers and specialists will receive credits under the Ministry of Education and Culture, and assistant educators – a certificate of completed training.

Visualization of the environment supporting the activities of everyday life and routine moments are of utmost importance in the process of learning children with special needs. Visual schedules related to daily activities, using the toilet, washing hands, getting ready for dressing, eating, sleeping, etc. help and support the child in their independent performance (once they are trained to follow them). Teachers should not forget that when applying a visual timetable for the daily regime in the group, it is necessary to include all children in its use. Using symbolic pictures helps children understand instructions, follow rules, and improves social behavior. Introducing a symbolic picture meaning ‘change’ or ‘surprise’ and explaining upcoming events would help children who find it difficult to deviate from their routine to accept and adapt to unexpected changes more easily. If a child with special needs uses sign language or another alternative method of communication, the teachers and other children in the group must be aware of this in order to respond in an adequate way and provide assistance. Each child has his or her own strengths that the teacher and therapists must discover. They will be a starting point to overcome the difficulties one by one.

The project involves activities related to supervision of specific cases and on-site support of the teams.