A pedagogical experiment with the most special children of Mollerussa

MollerussaPlacing the child as the main protagonist of their learning, providing them with autonomy to foster curiosity and ability, claiming the natural environment and parental collaboration, and turning educators into simple guides of the process. These are some of the postulates of the educational model of the Reggio Emilia schools, in northern Italy, considered the best and most innovative in the world (even though they were founded after World War II).

This educational model has not taken root in our country. At least for now. But there are sporadic attempts, some of which are as revolutionary as the one made this year in Mollerussa. And it is that not only has this experiment been put into practice, but it has been done with the special education students of the Siloé school. Quite a masterstroke that has yielded successful results.

The pedagogue and therapist Ester Reche, together with the facilitator Vanesa Freixa, both originally from Pallars Sobirà, have carried out several sessions over the last three months with very special students. Leaves, stones, flowers, water, along with brushes and markers, have served for each of the students, from their own ability and pace, to experiment and work on creativity in a way that has ended up being extraordinary.

The result has been more successful than many expected. It could be seen and touched in the form of collective works of art on April 11th at the l'Amistat theater in Mollerussa, where they were exhibited during the El Sol del Pla awards ceremony organized by the Pla d'Urgell regional council.

The Reggio Emilia educational model is designed for early childhood education, but having tried it with special needs students has been quite a daring feat. In the most acute cases, activities were limited to purely sensory contact; in others, students were able to unleash their artistic capacity beyond what they imagined. “Seeing their smiles and hugs has been a true gift, because theirs is a purely genuine reaction,” assures Ester Reche.

“We have learned a great deal, we are hooked and we leave the doors open to do this project again,” stated the director of CEE Siloé, Agnès Rubinat, during the presentation of the project at L’Amistat, which was attended by some of the young participants of the project. In this regard, the leaders of the regional council are already studying the possibility of reissuing the initiative and, if possible, with a longer duration.

“It is a method that tends to be more costly, because it requires the hiring of external educators, but it is really very worthwhile,” argues Reche, who acknowledges that this is not strictly her professional field. For this reason, the pedagogue has relied on the help of the creator and activist Vanesa Freixa: “We understood each other from the first moment,” she says.

And Freixa has also shown surprise at the project: “It has been a brutal exercise, on our part, of true presence: Serving them for what they need, not forcing them. Being attentive. Often more in silence than with words. And things happen. And of course, they do happen.”