Make Your Mark

International Dot Day may be new to you, especially if you don't keep up with Children's Literature. So...to bring you up to speed...

In the children's book The Dot, by Peter H. Reynolds, we meet a little girl named Vashti who thinks she can't draw. Her art teacher advises her. "Just make a mark and see where it takes you." Vashti makes a dot on her art page, and much to Vashti's surprise, her teacher frames the dot picture. So this gets Vashti's creative juices flowing, and before too long Vashti has painted a gallery full of masterpieces.

The Bible tells us we are each an individual masterpiece of our Creator God. 

"For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." Ephesians 2:10 New Living Translation

The Greek word translated "masterpiece," or "workmanship," is poiema. God created us in His image, and as His children, we bear a resemblance to our Heavenly Father. God is creative, and He allows us to create, too. Each one of us is unique, and before we were born, God prepared good works for us to do.

On Dot Day, the students exercised their creative muscles. They were encouraged to be brave and make their mark.

We had lots of fun with dots. We explored new and creative ways to practice addition skills. Dots on dominoes, dots on dice, dots on a game called "Splat,".... all these dots provided opportunities to add.

 

 Dots were everywhere! They even showed up as stickers on the Sight Word Booklets. And International Dot Day didn't keep our students from making progress in learning their sight words.

Creativity can take many forms.  It isn't limited to the visual arts such as painting, drawing, and sculpting. Creative expression can mean writing a story, composing a song, or coming up with innovative solutions to problems. Culinary concoctions, theatrical performances, computer software, and scientific innovations are all manifestations of creativity. 

Who knows what wonders these students will create as they discover their God-given talents and as they make the most of the opportunities God brings their way!