O pátio escolar do ensino fundamental como ambiente de brincar segundo as crianças usuárias

The intention of the present study was to analyze the adequacy of the playground of elementary schools, according to the point of view of the child student, direct user of this type of environment, what estimated its critical in respect to these spaces and aimed at to contribute for its improvement. Many studies have analyzed the quality of the physical environment available for activities of leisure in specific places for children, focusing in the influence of the physical space in the interpersonal relationships and the comfort and satisfaction generated by the physical characteristics of these spaces. Concern with scholar environment, specially the interest on playgrounds, has been subject of recent studies; however, little attention has been given to the opinion of the user-child in relation to this school environment. In this inquiry of the playground of two state schools of 1ª to 4ª series of elementary school in the city of Piracicaba, SP, was used: assystematics observations, photographic register of the studied environments, interviews with child-users and behavioral mapping. The main subjects resulting from the analysis of the interviews content were: adaptation, density and interpersonal relationships, and infantile confinement. The results revealed the unsatisfactory conditions of the courtyards, in respect to person-environment relationship. The children demonstrated to be critical, creative and responsible when answering questions related to the quality of the school courtyard. This finding confirms previous studies and leads to the conclusion that the child, as the direct user, should be included as an excellent source of consultation in the planning of the constructed environment

A Ceasa-RN e os circuitos da economia urbana: a circulação de hortifrutigranjeiros em Natal-RN

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior

Zoneamento agroclimático da palma forrageira (Opuntia sp.) para o estado da Paraíba

The cactus pear has become over the years an important forage alternative for brazilian semiarid region, especially during long periods of drought. Despite its importance for agriculture, its cultivation has dispensed basic crop practices and fundamentals technical-scientific basis about its climatic requirements. Thus, the main objective of this study was to elaborate the agroclimatic zoning of cactus pear (Opuntia sp.) for the state of Paraíba. The agroclimatic zoning of cactus pear was based on climatic indicators outlined in the literature and climatological data of precipitation and temperature (mean, maximum, and minimum) from 97 locations in the state of Paraíba. According to the results, the region of ‘Borborema’ is the most favorable for the cultivation of cactus pear. The regions of ‘Agreste’, ‘Sertão’, and coastal part of Litoral may be used but with restrictions. However, the cultivation of cactus pear is recommended throughout the state of Paraíba, except the coastal part of the Litoral and the region around Areia. In both cases, the inability is due to excessive precipitation.