“School is a place of inclusion. We like to go there…” is what is said in a scene of “Our Pinocchio”, the final scenic composition of the project for the expansion of the “Scenabili” training offer. The phrase quoted is not just a joke, but a proud modus operandi of the school community ofIISS “G. Dell’Olio” of Bisceglie.
In fact, the Headmaster, Prof. Eng. Mauro Visaggioand the entire teaching staff wanted the implementation, in the 2023/2024 school year, of four inclusive projects: the Regional Project “School, Sport and Disability” (contact person for the project, Prof. Mary Trident), PTOF project “The soul in the hand” (external expert Pantaleo Anneseactor and puppeteer, project coordinator prof.ssa Giovanna Gagliardi). PTOF project “You call them if you want emotions” (external expert prof. Vincenzo Abasciaproject coordinator Prof.ssa Giusi D’Altorio), PTOF project “Scenabili” (master external expert Francesco Martinelliproject coordinator Prof. Giusi D’Altorio).
The project ”School, Sport and Disability” It is part of the “Promotion of physical and sporting activities as a tool for prevention and inclusion” actions identified in the 2022/2024 Sports Guidelines of the Puglia Region. It aims to spread the idea of Sport for all, as part of the agreement between the Regional Paralympic Committee (CIP Puglia), the Department of Sport for All (Puglia Region) and the USR Puglia (General Directorate). The Project, led by Prof. Tridente, saw the involvement of two tutors to support students with motor disabilities, and was conducted as a team effort which contributed, through the creation of sporting activities, to the dissemination and to the promotion of Paralympic sport, its values, the pursuit of a healthy lifestyle aimed at social inclusion.
“Pulcinella and Donna Flor” is the title of the final restitution of the inclusive puppet theater project “The soul in the hand”. The students attempted various laboratory activities starting from the construction of the puppet with the traditional technique of the Neapolitan master puppeteers, continuing with its animation, with acting, music and scene noises. Violence against women was the theme of the final staging, treated with the lightness of puppet theater and the participants’ full awareness of the dramatic relevance of the topic. The objective of the project was not to learn to act, but to gain self-awareness by seeking out one’s unexpressed potential, learning to express oneself and communicate more effectively, nourish one’s self-esteem, overcome limits, often unconsciously self-imposed, especially in adolescence.
The project “You call them if you want emotions” was born from the desire to allow all students to experience, through relationships, the ability to express their feelings, their way of perceiving others, nature, emotions, making use of alternative communication channels compared to the verbal one. The laboratory, through the use of iconic, artistic and pictorial language, allowed the development of imagination and creativity, giving space to the expressive, emotional and relational potential of each person, respecting the characteristics of the individual. The workshop concluded with an exhibition, in the atrium of the School, of the artistic creations on the theme of emotions, created by the students involved in the project.
Last but not least, the Project “Scenarios”, a social-inclusive laboratory of experimentation and theatrical education, has pursued the objective of allowing all students to have a more conscious perception of others, opening up new possibilities of communication and relationships. The entire working group found itself sharing a “doing” together to “be” in the same space and time, as protagonist, and at the same time user, of a climate of trust, listening and attention, because it was valued in its specificity . The project involved the conception and creation of the scenic composition “Our Pinocchio”, adaptation of “The Adventures of Pinocchio” by Collodi. The choice of the character of Pinocchio represents an invitation to reflect… Everyone, in some way, should be born twice, recognizing that we have limits, that we are vulnerable: “These children are born twice, they must learn to move in a world that the first birth made it more difficult. The second depends on you, on what you are able to give; in the end it will be a rebirth for you too” (G. Pontiggia, Born twice).
The school year that has just ended was therefore for the students of the IISS “G. Dell’Olio” in the name of enhancing inclusion: being active subjects and participating in the creation of inclusive and shared projects was an important growth experience that stimulated the rediscovery of the self, in the awareness of the extraordinary uniqueness of each one, of the richness that derives from the essential diversity of each person compared to others .
