International Dot Day is an event staged to encourage people of all ages to harness their creativity. The inspiration behind the event is the children’s book The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds. It relates the tale of a teacher who challenges one of his female pupils to take courage in her abilities, and from a simple dot on a page the youngster goes on to make her mark. Dot Day has grown to be a worldwide celebration each year. Teachers encourage students to celebrate the day with writing, drawing, painting, or other creative outlets, and then share students' on the Dot Day website to inspire others. There was quite a bit of creativity flowing on the EC-Grade 8 campus as students of all ages got into the creative flow. Here are just a few examples:

• The Dot – students used Dot candies and toothpicks to create a structure
• Happy Dreamer – students made an origami fortune teller (kind of like the fortunes you find in a fortune cookie – based on being your best)
• Ish – students created a star and included a wish
• Sky Color – students created an elementary school mural, with each student contributing a part
• I’m Here – students decorated paper showing places they'd like to go, and then they turned it into a paper airplane.

See more Dot Day photos

We had more than 40 pastors and youth leaders spend part of the day with us on Wednesday, September 12 for our Grades 9-12 Pastors' Day. After a fabulous breakfast (thanks Chef Bill!), pastors enjoyed school updates, chapel with Jon Heinly, classroom visits and lunch with students from their congregations.

Thanks to Mike Landis Photographer for these photos

The cast list has been announced for Dock Theater's fall production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's timeless classic, The Sound of Music. Performances will be November 8, 9, and 10 at 7:00 p.m. 

Click here for the cast list and a link to purchase tickets

If you know your Mark Twain, as Dock 6th graders do, you know that Calaveras County, California, is the setting for Twain's story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" Now, thanks to the innovative College Preparatory Mathematics curriculum, Twain's story is serving as a backdrop for Dock middle school students to learn mathematics.

"The CPM curriculum features math problems that try to connect to other areas of study," says middle school math teacher Mrs. Claire Wanamaker. Students recently tackled a math problem that incorporated the story of frog jumping in Calaveras County. "Instead of just using the data in the textbook, students had an opportunity to create their own set of data," adds Mrs. Wanamaker. 

Students began by learning the history of frog jumping in Calaveras County by watching a video and reading a short children's book. Then the big day arrived, when students brought in their own frogs and become "frog jockeys." Naturally, the frogs all had names, including Toadee, Frog, Drako, Travis, Larry and Big Joe. Each frog got to jump three times before a measurement was taken. Students learned that frogs don't always jump in a straight line, which could affect their frog's jumping distance. "Our record jump was 110 centimeters—or a little under four feet," reports Mrs. Wanamaker. The world record is over 17 feet. 

"The CPM book provides the students with data on frog jumping distances to teach them how to make histograms," she adds. "It was fun to connect math problems to their other core classes, especially English, since many students have read some of Twain's works."

In case you were wondering, Calaveras County hosts an annual fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee, featuring a frog-jumping contest, to celebrate the association with Twain. Each year's winner is commemorated with a brass plaque mounted on a downtown sidewalk known as the Frog Hop of Fame. Now you know!

See more frog jumping photos

Mrs. Cathy Derstine was honored September 4 on the EC-Grade 8 Campus for her 20 years of service to the Dock community as a kindergarten classroom aide. She has also served as recess aide and playground supervisor. 

"Cathy has a genuine love and passion for every student," said Mrs. Jillian Immel, a Kindergarten teacher who has worked with Cathy for nearly a decade. "She is always there to help them with anything they might need, from walks to Mrs. Shelly's office, adjusting the volume at the listening center, to helping them open their yogurt tubes and carrot packets at lunch. Cathy is so full of energy! You might think that after a full morning of keeping busy with kindergartners that she is ready to take a break. Never! She can be found visiting at the Souderton Home, painting, mowing her lawn or Facetiming with her sweet grandchildren.

"As loving and energized as Cathy is, the easiest attribute for me to talk about is her strong Christian faith.  She lives this out every day in the way she interacts with students and colleagues. Her love for Jesus is shown in how she relies on him for everything and prays continuously. I always know when I have a prayer concern that Cathy is praying and remembering." 

Cathy was presented with a custom fraktur, designed and created by Dock alum Emily Smucker Beidler ('83). Congratulations, Cathy—and thank you for investing so much of yourself in our students!

Back to School Night

Walk in the Steps of your Student

Tuesday, September 11, 2018

6:30 pm – Gathering time and snacks in cafeteria

6:45 pm – Program

7:00 pm – Open House—walk your student's schedule

Please join us for an evening of fellowship with teachers, other Dock parents, and students. You will learn about your teenager's school day by following their schedule. Feel free to bring your student's schedule with you. A copy will also be available that night. We look forward to seeing you there!

Our first Admissions Open House of the 2018-19 school year will be held on the Grades 9-12 Campus on Saturday, October 6, 2018, from 12:30 - 3:00 p.m. Prospective high school students and their families can tour Dock's beautiful campus, meet our faculty and coaches, and learn about academics, athletics, art, music, and other opportunities that help students create an extraordinary Dock experience.

No RSVP is necessary, though you are welcome to contact Director of Admissions Doug Hackman or submit an inquiry for more information.

A watercolor by Grades 9-12 art teacher Tim Swartz ('74) has been accepted into the Philadelphia Watercolor Society's 118th International Exhibition, which will be held at the Wayne Art Center from October 14 - November 20. Mr. Swartz's painting is entitled Blankheart, referencing the empty tattoo on the subject's arm.

"I was up at Jake's Flea Market in Bally last summer looking for folks just like him," says Mr. Swartz. "I took a few photos and used them for the painting. I've gone back to show him but haven't come across him again." Mr. Swartz says his subject was well aware of his image. "When I asked to take his photo, he said, 'It's the look, isn't it?' I almost named the painting 'It's the look,' but decided Blankheart was better."

The Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) covers uninsured children up to age 19. With more than 111,000 uninsured children in Pennsylvania, this is great news for families! CHIP provides quality, comprehensive health insurance for routine doctor visits, prescriptions, dental, eye care, eyeglasses, mental health, and much more. CHIP covers uninsured kids who are not eligible for Medical Assistance. For most families, CHIP is free; for others, it is low cost.

A flyer and other resources can be found on the CHIP website at www.CHIPcoversPAkids.com, under CHIP Resources.

A special thanks to all of our families and friends who joined us last night for our EC-Grade 8 Open House & New Family Meal. Our new Pioneer mascot even made his debut appearance... what a great evening! We look forward to seeing you all for the first day of school!

See more photos from the Open House