International Dot Day…Self-Esteem Through Artistic Expression

Posted on September 15, 2012 by viviankirkfield

Raise your hand if you think you can draw.

If you didn’t raise your hand, you are like most of us…our inner artist has been discouraged and hammered down.

How does this happen? A parent says, “No, the grass should be green!” The teacher says, “That’s not how a dog looks!” A fellow classmate says, “You can’t draw!”

In 2003, Peter Reynolds wrote and illustrated a book that encouraged children of all ages to be to imagine, dream and create. His premise was that there is no right or wrong way.

This week over 500,000 children in all 50 states and around the world will be participating in International Dot Day, in their classrooms or at home.

Visit http://www.thedotclub.org/dotday/ to learn more about International Dot Day. You will find activity suggestions, resources, a global map showing participants…you can even take a look at the dots being created by celebrities.

As parents and as teachers, we can

Encourage our children to enjoy all types of art mediums…paint, clay, paper cutting, drawing and sculpting.
Provide the materials and participate with our kids.
Make thoughtful, but non-judgmental comments about our children’s art.
Proudly display the art our children produce.

Creative expression is art in its purest form.

If you allow yourself to have fun with art, so will your children.

During my time in New Hampshire, my almost four-year old grandson became fascinated with Cheerios. We had a Cheerios Halloween Board Book that called for using Cheerios on different pages to fill in missing buttons, eyeglasses, etc. Jeremy had a ball…placing Cheerios in the “proper” places…and then eating each one! Here’s his International Dot Day dot picture.

The Dot – International Dot Day (childrensbooksheal.com)
International Dot Day – Sept. 15, 2012 (childrensbooksheal.com)
Come Celebrate International Dot Day with Us – September 15, 2012 (angelamaiers.com)
International Dot Day – 4′s Class (swsharrington.wordpress.com)
Art Therapy and 9/11 (schoolpsychscholar.com)

29 thoughts on “International Dot Day…Self-Esteem Through Artistic Expression”

Joanna on September 15, 2012 at 10:41 am said:

This is such an important issue for so many kids. I was one of them. Love the eye at the centre of your dot, Vivian. Great to celebrate this creative day.

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- viviankirkfield on September 16, 2012 at 1:18 am said:
  
  Thanks, Joanna…you are right…most parents and teachers don’t ‘purposely’ squash a young child’s creativity…they do it without thinking, because that’s what they heard when they were growing up or perhaps they want to encourage the child to ‘conform’ and fit in. Some may just be very controling parents…but we can all learn to take a step back and allow a child to breath, expand and express when doing art! Glad you liked my dot. 🙂
  
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thiskidreviewsbooks on September 15, 2012 at 12:30 pm said:

Your dot is really cool and pretty! 🙂

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- viviankirkfield on September 16, 2012 at 1:19 am said:
  
  Thanks, Erik…you are very kind! Now I have double reading and commenting to do…for the PPBF entries and for those that did a separate one for International Dot Day. 🙂
  
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Patricia Tilton on September 15, 2012 at 2:08 pm said:

Love your dot Vivian. Love the eye in the center. Didn’t your grandson help you?

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- viviankirkfield on September 16, 2012 at 1:24 am said:
  
  Thanks, Pat! Jeremy decided which order for the colors…he actually did one of his own with Cheerios…which are kind of dots, I think. 🙂 It was packed away and I couldn’t find it when I posted last night…but I will add his as soon as I can. 🙂
  
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  - Patricia Tilton on September 16, 2012 at 4:07 am said:
    
    Cheerios are perfect. Love it. Dot Day was a big success. Had to huge events going on at the same time with Dot Day and the launch of Song of Sahel, an anthology of poetry about the crisis in Sahel, Africa.
    
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Beth Stilborn on September 15, 2012 at 2:48 pm said:

Cool dot! Wonderful post. I was one of those kids who had her artistic leanings thwarted by various things as I grew up. Thank goodness for a friend and mentor who unleashed my creativity when I was in my late teens.

Thanks, Vivian!

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- viviankirkfield on September 16, 2012 at 1:28 am said:
  
  You are one of the lucky ones, Beth! So many of us have missed out on decades of enjoyment and pleasure. My husband started painting about three years ago…and he absolutely loves it. He never thought of himself as artistic or creative…but his work is wonderful and it brings him great joy!
  
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Marylin Warner on September 15, 2012 at 3:56 pm said:

It’s important in senior centers, nursing homes and assisted living facilities, too. It’s amazing how much happier people of all ages can be with a big pad of paper, some colored pencils or crayons and encouragement!

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- viviankirkfield on September 16, 2012 at 1:30 am said:
  
  Yup…it doesn’t take expensive gadgets to make people happy. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by, Marylin…and thanks for the comment about seniors…more art…less pills. 🙂
  
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Susanna Leonard Hill on September 16, 2012 at 12:08 am said:

Awesome dot and wonderful post, Vivian! 🙂

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- viviankirkfield on September 16, 2012 at 5:20 am said:
  
  Thank you, Susanna…it was fun…we should all spend more time drawing and doodling. 🙂
  
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- viviankirkfield on September 17, 2012 at 4:30 am said:
  
  Thank you, Susanna…I’m grateful to Pat and Beth…I learned about it from their posts. BTW, your daughter’s pony is adorable…and I LOVED your DOT!
  
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Tracy Campbell on September 16, 2012 at 2:12 am said:

What a fabulous idea! I wish there was something like that way back when. I got a C in high school art and I never picked up a pencil until 1994 because my art teacher said I didn’t have any talent. 🙂

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- viviankirkfield on September 16, 2012 at 5:21 am said:
  
  And look at you now!!!!
  That’s the thing…we all have so much talent…we just have to believe in ourselves…Peter Reynolds had the right idea!
  
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  - Tracy Campbell on September 16, 2012 at 10:47 am said:
    
    How true! Meaning we have to believe in ourselves.
    
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    - viviankirkfield on September 17, 2012 at 4:52 am said:
      
      Yes…believing in oneself is a key ingredient in having a positive self-image. That’s why I am so passionate about encouraging parents to participate positively with their kids. 🙂
      
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- viviankirkfield on September 17, 2012 at 4:34 am said:
  
  And look at you now, Tracy! You can’t keep a good woman/artist down. 🙂 Although many people don’t draw/play an instrument/sing/write…because someone in their childhood told them they weren’t very good. 😦
  
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  - Tracy Campbell on September 17, 2012 at 4:40 am said:
    
    Very sad, indeed 😦
    Have a wonderful week!
    
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patientdreamer on September 16, 2012 at 8:09 am said:

Love your colourful dot Vivian, What you call cherrios we call cheezels, very cute idea. I have always loved art, especially pencil drawing.

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- viviankirkfield on September 17, 2012 at 4:48 am said:
  
  Thanks, Diane! I’ve always loved arts and crafts…but don’t think of myself as “artistic” and definitely not an “artist”. 🙂
  
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eof737 on September 16, 2012 at 2:53 pm said:

I love the idea of an international dot day! Brilliant, especially for folk who can only manage to draw stick people… include me in that count. 😆

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- viviankirkfield on September 17, 2012 at 4:55 am said:
  
  Hahaha…I am also one of those stick-figure artists. 🙂 You, Eliz, are one of my heroes when it comes to blogging positively…your posts are always so uplifitng and meaningful!
  
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nrhatch on September 16, 2012 at 9:27 pm said:

Here’s to celebrating our Inner Artist!

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- viviankirkfield on September 17, 2012 at 5:09 am said:
  
  For some of us, that inner artist is hidden deep within, unfortunately. 🙂 But with positive feedback, the inner artist can get stronger and break out! 🙂
  
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Perfecting Motherhood on September 17, 2012 at 11:15 pm said:

International dot day? What a great idea! My boys and I did some painting on the floor this weekend, after I discovered tons of large poster board papers in the garage. The best part was admiring each other’s work when we were done.

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- viviankirkfield on September 18, 2012 at 12:16 am said:
  
  I am always blown-away with all that you do with your boys…and your positive parental participation…you are a very special woman, Milka…and your kids are so lucky to have you for a mom. 🙂
  
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  - Perfecting Motherhood on September 18, 2012 at 1:39 am said:
    
    Thanks, Vivian. I’ve been wanting to paint with the boys for a couple of weeks but they’ve been very busy building Lego. The large paper size was apparently very enticing. Whatever works!
    
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