The goals of the project were: 1. encouraging the professional development of teachers and their competencies for working with students with special needs through application of modern and scientifically based methods and techniques 2. development of social, psychological, speech- and language and academic competences and encouragement of socio-emotional development of students with special needs through the application of animal assisted therapy 3. encouraging the social inclusion of students with special needs with the help of animals 4. developing tolerance and acceptance of diversity and adoption of European values through joint activities of students from different European countries.
Special primary schools plan educational work according to the needs of students, and the goal is to develop their maximum potential. Each student requires an individual approach, which must be supported by resources that are not common in regular schools and work methods that require additional teacher education. The application of innovative and scientifically based techniques and work methods, such as animal assisted therapy, is one of the ways in which educational work can be improved and the process of learning and teaching can be made interesting and stimulating for students. Animal assisted therapy has its benefits in the academic field, but also in the field of physical, psychological, social, emotional development and behavior modification, which facilitates the inclusion of students in the community and increases their visibility in society. The project developed additional teacher competencies that made the learning process more interesting and useful for students. In students, the development of basic competencies (academic, socio-emotional, communication), necessary for everyday life and work, was encouraged, and in parents, it had an effect on increasing satisfaction with the progress achived by their children.