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6. INTERVENTIONS Education of a child with physical disability The pre-school age is the period of development of the cognitive functions and socialisation. Children with physical disabilities are often limited by deprivation of stimuli and experience. Their intellectual abilities are often lower, resembling younger children. In some cases physical disability may be associated with mental retardation. However, their lower performance is more often caused by the lack of experience and delayed motor development. Improving their movement often leads to improvement in intellectual abilities. Children with organic damage to the brain have problems with attention and memory. This causes them to get tired very quickly while doing school work. Being tired, they also have lower activation level. Many other issues children with physical disabilities may develop in educational situations include the following: difficulties with reproduction, perception, differentiation, synthesis, analysis, problems differentiating shape, colour, amount, size, and to create groups. Cerebral palsy is also associated with speech problems, typical is dysartria, dyslalia, poor vocabulary and grammar. The emotional reactions are often also not adequate, children have problems to control their own reactions and may develop hyperkinetic movements. During the first days at school it is important to find whether the child can move within the school independently or will need assistance. School environment adaptation is necessary to reach as much independents for the child as possible (toilet, dressing room, dinning hall, sports facilities, etc.). The level of mobility influences the quality of life of children at school and is also the basic assumption of their successful social inclusion. Sometimes further adaptation of school operations may be necessary according to the individual needs of a child. This may include timetable adaptations, classroom changes, etc. It is also necessary to find convenient sitting position. The main aim is to enable the function of activities. The healthy children can change their position at any time, but handicapped children often have not got this possibility. Children need a good sitting position, use a proper support which allows doing the school activities. Many handicaps need special approach to sitting position. For example bad body posture, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, spina bifida, rheumatism, brain damage. The chosen chair or wheelchair must reflect the physical, functional and therapeutic aspects. The pupil should have a possibility to change his/her position individually. Immobile pupils have a bad circulation, especially in the lower limbs. A good help is exercise, lifting of limbs and other prevention. In some cases is necessary an external support. This support is needed by pupils with week trunk, bad head control etc. Some wheelchairs have added communication system. Using of the information technologies help to increase the self-confidence and influence the approach of the schoolmates. The wide range of technologies is convenient to support handicapped pupils in communication, education, mobility and socialisation. Computers with convenient software together with educational approaches help to develop pupilâs abilities and possibilities of their education. Programmes must refer to age and educational level of pupil and correspond the changing needs. The rapid development of technologies helps to use different versions of the program equipment for most of the computers. The main emphasise is on physical access to computer (adaptation of keyboard etc.). For the school work is important the level of the fine motor co-ordination, if the child is able to write, draw, level of the hand function, working speed, communication abilities.
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