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Key Facts

  • The Center for Municipal Early Childhood Education (Cemei) José Simão dos Reis won first place in the 2025 Christmas Symbols Contest.
  • The winning symbol was a nativity scene made with biscuit dough pieces that included the participation of an autistic student.
  • The competition was promoted by the Municipal Education Secretariat (Semed) of Santarém, Pará.
  • Prizes included a notebook for first place, a printer for second, and a cell phone for third.

Quick Summary

The Center for Municipal Early Childhood Education (Cemei) José Simão dos Reis secured the first position in the 2025 Christmas Symbols Contest. The event was organized by the Municipal Education Secretariat (Semed) in Santarém, Pará, with results released on December 23.

The winning entry was a presépio (nativity scene) constructed using biscuit dough pieces. A distinctive feature of this creation was the participation of an autistic student from the institution. School coordinator Marta Martins highlighted the emotional significance of the win and the inclusive nature of the project.

Other institutions also received recognition for their entries:

  • Second Place: Aldo Ferreira Campos School
  • Third Place: Rotary School

The ceremony was attended by Secretary of Education Nilton Araújo, who presented the awards. The contest aims to rescue the true meaning of Christmas while fostering creativity and community integration.

🏆 Winning Entry and Inclusive Design

The Cemei José Simão dos Reis achieved the top honor with a nativity scene that emphasized community participation. The project utilized massa de biscuit (biscuit dough) to create the figurines, a traditional crafting technique. The inclusion of an autistic student in the creation process was a central element of the winning submission.

School coordinator Marta Martins celebrated the achievement and emphasized the collaborative spirit of the project. She noted that the student's family shared in the anticipation leading up to the announcement. The victory serves as a validation of the school's commitment to integrating all students into creative activities.

The contest is specifically designed for all educational units in the municipality. Its stated goals include:

  • Rescuing the true meaning of Christmas.
  • Valuing a festive, sensitive, and Christian environment.
  • Incentivizing creativity and school integration.
  • Encouraging community participation.

By focusing on these pillars, the Secretaria Municipal de Educação (Semed) aims to foster a deeper connection between the schools and the local culture of Santarém.

🏅 Award Ceremony and Prizes

Following the announcement of the results, a formal award ceremony took place. Nilton Araújo, the Municipal Secretary of Education, was present to distribute the prizes to the representatives of the winning schools. The recognition highlighted the efforts of students and staff across different educational levels.

The distribution of prizes was as follows:

  1. 1st Place: Cemei José Simão received one notebook.
  2. 2nd Place: Aldo Ferreira Campos School received one printer.
  3. 3rd Place: Rotary School received one cell phone.

These awards were intended to support the educational activities of the winning institutions while recognizing their artistic contributions to the holiday festivities in the municipality.

🗣️ Organizer’s Perspective

Professor João Magalhães, the idealizer and coordinator of the contest, provided a positive evaluation of the 2025 edition. He highlighted the diversity of the participating institutions, noting that schools from urban areas and river regions took part. Magalhães also emphasized the transparency of the selection process.

According to Magalhães, the voting process involved active participation from parents and students. To ensure neutrality in the selection, the organizers invited a representative from the state network, specifically the Teresinha Rodrigues school, to participate in the judging. He concluded by thanking everyone involved and expressing hope for increased participation in the following year.

"We are very happy and want, on behalf of the Cemei, to thank you for this award. We lived this moment with great expectation, together with the family of the child who participated in the production of the nativity scene. It is worth noting that he is an autistic student in the municipal network and is also very happy with this victory." — Marta Martins, Coordinator of Cemei José Simão dos Reis

"We had schools from the urban area, from the river regions, from early childhood education, in addition to the active participation of parents and students in the voting. We also invited a state network school, Teresinha Rodrigues, to guarantee even more neutrality in the choice. We thank everyone involved and hope to expand participation even more next year." — Professor João Magalhães, Contest Coordinator