The inclusion of bearers of deficiencies in schools has been a guiding and dominating proposal in Special Education, including in Brazil, and has directed rehabilitation and educational programs and policies. The aim of this study was to describe and to analyze the interaction among three students with Mental Retardation (MR) and their peers. The study was carried out with first-grade students of three core municipal schools of the city of Vitória, ES, Brazil, who had classmates who were bearers of MR. All 80 students were given a sociometric test containing questions on three choices and rejections of classmates with whom to play and to accomplish classroom tasks. Fifteen observation sessions were recorded, five for each target children (plus an extra one for one of the children), during an entire month. The results showed that students who have special education needs are less frequently accepted and more frequently rejected than their peers in regular classrooms. It was noted that subjects spent most of their time alone, showing difficulties in initiating, maintaining and finalizing contacts with their classmates.
peers interaction; school inclusion; mental deficiency
