Sycamore Park Elementary students celebrated creativity, courage and kindness in a big way for International Dot Day on September 15, with activities in both the library and art classes inspired by Peter H. Reynolds’ book The Dot.
International Dot Day encourages students to embrace their creativity and discover how even the smallest beginning can grow into something meaningful. Throughout the celebration, Sycamore Park students learned that making their mark can happen through art, kindness and the courage to simply get started.
In the library with Mrs. Ward, students read The Dot and discussed what it means to “make your mark.” Each grade level created dots using a designated color, resulting in a colorful display that stretched from red for fifth grade to pink for Pre-K.
As students decorated their dots, they talked about how making a difference doesn’t always require a grand gesture. They discussed starting small, being an example for others, looking for simple ways to help and using their individual talents to make a positive impact. Mrs. Ward said, “It was a great reminder that every Panther has the power to make their mark.”
Students carried that message of creativity into the art room, where Mrs. Rizzo brought the entire K-5 student body together for a schoolwide collaborative art project featuring nearly 700 individually designed dots.
Each student began with a circle and used paint sticks and markers to fill it with unique colors and patterns. Students in second through fifth grades then cut their circles into quarters and positioned the pieces with the points facing outward on white squares. When placed together, the individual pieces formed colorful paper “quilt squares” that connected to create one large collaborative masterpiece.
“This project started from my desire to participate in Dot Day in some way and my love of collaborative art projects,” Mrs. Rizzo said. “Sometimes I feel like students are nervous to even try anything in art because they are afraid of making a mistake, and the book The Dot is a good example of what can happen when you are brave and just start creating without worrying about the end result.”
The project itself soon became an example of the collaboration and kindness students had been discussing. Older students who finished their own work helped cut dots created by kindergarten and first-grade students, with some students helping complete as many as 10 additional quilt squares.
“My favorite part of this project was how it really turned into a collaboration,” Mrs. Rizzo said.
When the finished artwork was unveiled, students “oohed and aahed” over the massive display and eagerly searched for their own dots among the hundreds that made up the finished piece.
From hundreds of individual dots came two colorful reminders of an important lesson: Every student has something unique to contribute, and even the smallest mark can become part of something much bigger.
For Sycamore Park’s Panthers, Dot Day was about more than creating art. It was about having the courage to begin, using their talents to help others and recognizing that everyone has the power to make their mark.
