Regina's Big Mistake | A Best Picture Book Review

Regina's Big Mistake is a fairly straightforward story that will resonate with most children, but most especially with perfectionists who strive to be perfect and are frustrated enough to give up when their efforts do not match their expectations.

The teacher, Mrs. Li, passes out paper to the children to draw a jungle scene. When Regina makes a mistake and tears the paper, she gets one more sheet but is told to "draw around it next time; you're wasting paper." She's so afraid to make a mistake she starts to copy from the children around her, but makes hers slightly different when they complain to her that she is copying. Almost done with her drawing and pleased with it, she gives it a final touch - and makes a big mistake. Can she turn the mistake into a positive piece of her artwork? Finally she sees a solution and is able to make her drawing work.

Is my child still a perfectionist? Well, yes, she is. My interest in this book was never to "cure" her, as her perfectionism is simply a trait she was born with. She is now a gifted artist, and I believe that the type of perfectionism she deals with is frequently called the "artistic temperament." 

But this book, along with one other titled Christina Katerina and the Box, did do exactly what I needed. Though very different in approach (Christian Katerina adapts instantly to any new circumstance), they were my curriculum to help her to learn to look beyond the "mistake" that didn't appear exactly the way she had wanted it to appear, and work with what is in front of her. Of course, the better she learned that lesson, and the more she drew, the more her attempts did, in fact, look just like what she saw in her head.

In no way is the application of this book limited to perfectionists or to perfectionistic artists! Most children will feel as frustrated as Regina at some point, and it is a simple matter to help them transfer what they learn from Regina to whatever area they are attempting to master.