Created in the Image of God

At Carinya, we believe and affirm to every child:
- you matter because you are an individual, personally made by God, in His image, to know Him and to serve Him.
- your importance as a person is given by the Creator. It is not earned or lost! It is intrinsic to you as a person.

To be ‘created in the image of God’ means each child is created by God with qualities which God Himself has. Some of these qualities are purpose, intelligence, creativity, understanding, compassion and insight.

In God, these qualities are perfect and inexhaustible. In people they are imperfect and incomplete, but still very real and genuine qualities. God made each of us to be like Himself and sent Jesus to show clearly what that means. In a very special way we each have His image ‘written all over us’.

Every Child is an Individual

The individuality of each person is central to how we think about education at Carinya, because God gives His ‘image’ differently and uniquely to each child we teach. Therefore, the individuality of every child is prized, nurtured and encouraged in how teachers approach the task of teaching. Prizing and valuing the individuality of each child means:
- Teachers avoid using competitive structures to motivate children.
- We value the learning of each child equally.
- We reject structures and teaching methods which single out ‘the winners, the best, the dux, the fastest, etc’ in the classroom.
- Children are encouraged to value their own individuality and respect the individuality of others.
- Children are helped to see themselves as learners.
- Children are encouraged to be faithful (to always do their best).
- Children are encouraged to ‘seek the reward in the task’ and not look for prizes and rewards for learning.

Helping children to see that they have been created in God’s image on purpose and for a purpose allows them to be confident and thankful as they go about their learning and never despair or give up hope in their lives.