Five years ago, the pupils of Oberlin School in Homburg-Erbach expressed their wish for an exercise room to District Administrator Dr Theophil Gallo in person. At the time, he was already on his way to "Landrat macht Schule" and the school community took the opportunity to show him the disused swimming pool, which was to be remodelled and made functional. Everyone realised that it would be a costly construction project, but the district administrator promised his support. It took some time to dismantle the swimming pool, build new door openings - the old ones were bricked up - install fire protection, complete the interior work and much more. But the wait was worth it. Today, the new exercise room with a roller ramp, an exercise staircase, climbing wall modules and a device for swinging systems is almost complete; the flooring and the exercise and play equipment are still missing. The district administrator was able to see all of this for himself during his recent visit as part of the "Landrat macht Schule" programme. Nine pupils from the Werkstufe, acting headmistress Katharina Schaupp and teachers Kornelia Lambert and Ann-Kristin Gregor gave him a warm welcome and surprised him with a breakfast together, including scrambled eggs and homemade cake. The young people were very interested and attentive in their dialogue with the district administrator, and so they talked animatedly about their backgrounds, hobbies and career aspirations. The programme then included a tour of the new exercise room, which was joined by Konrad Schmitt, founder of hand-kraft GmbH, the company responsible for the interior work.
District Administrator Dr Theophil Gallo: "I am glad that we, as the school authorities, have invested in this project and that the wish for an exercise room is about to be fulfilled. It already looks great and I am convinced that the children will have a lot of fun and enjoyment in this room, which is mainly made of wood."
The costs for the construction of the exercise room amount to approx. 73,000 euros without play equipment.
"As many of our pupils also have motor skills impairments, we are very grateful that this room provides us with a new learning environment that promotes motor development with targeted play and movement activities," said Katharina Schaupp.
The Oberlin School in Homburg-Erbach is a special school specialising in mental development.