Th e world of the social experience and expectations of children with mild intellectual disabilities is very diverse. Such children do not always know how to cope with social expectations. In such situations they tend to withdraw or, conversely, behave improperly, in this way trying to mark their presence. Th e paper presents a pedagogical experiment, during which puppets were used in bibliotherapy classes. The method has already proven effective when working with children with mild intellectual disabilities. The main aim of the project was to develop adaptive behaviours in children with mild intellectual disabilities to include creative actions and the skills of social interaction in their upbringing and school environment and among their peers and to encourage them to seek effective ways to deal with their own difficulties.

This article presents the results of a study of school achievement and socioemotional integration in pupils with mild intellectual disability finishing Grade 3 of primary school. The participants attended schools/classes organized according to three different principles: special schools, integrated classes and regular classes. The main research question which this study strove to answer was: how does reduction of special educational care affect participants’ school achievement and psycho-social functioning? The study yielded the following findings: There were no significant differences between the pupils in the three different organizational forms of education as far as cognitive achievement is concerned. However, the pupils in special schools had the most beneficial psychosocial situation. They felt most comfortable at school, rated their peer relations most highly and were most motivated to study. Finally, the study demonstrated that special educational care at school weakens the relationship between pupils’ school achievement and their psycho-social situation.