Wednesday, January 24, 2018

Celebrate the 100th Day of School!







The 100th Day of School is one of my favorite days of the year in my first grade classroom! Like many primary classrooms, we count each day of school with straws and money during our calendar time. So when we get close to the 100th Day, anticipation builds for students! 100 days feels like quite a long time for first graders and definitely needs to be celebrated!

One of our favorite traditions on the 100th Day is dressing how we think we'll look when we are 100! There is grey hair, canes, walkers, and wrinkles galore! We usually start the day with writing about what we want our life to be like when we are 100!



We spend the majority of the rest of the school day working in centers and completing 100th Day challenges. I got inspiration from Catherine (The Brown Bag Teacher) and Cara (The First Grade Parade) for a centers sticker chart! I put students in teams of 2 or 3. As they complete each center challenge, they receive a sticker to add to their chart! Students went crazy over these stickers, and I love that they could take the sticker charts home and use them to share with their families about all the activities they did that day!



Students worked at each station for about 15 minutes and then would rotate to their next challenge! I used center signs as a visual reminder for students to easily find the next area of the classroom to head to for their next center. This kept transitions quick and calm and kept the day running smoothly!

For my stations, I rounded up some of my favorite activities that I've seen. In my 100th Day resource, I included editable versions of the center signs and sticker chart so that you can use your own favorite 100th Day activities! 




Station 1 Read 100 Books
I absolutely adore this idea from Catherine! I made an anchor chart, and at the beginning of the day we discussed how we could use teamwork to complete this challenge! We figured out that if each member of our class reads 5 books, we would get to 100. I left the chart up and set markers out, and as students finished a book (or 1 chapter of a chapter book) they could add the title to our chart. When students visited this center, they got cozy with pillows and stuffed animals to read, read, read!




Station 2 100 Cup Structure 

This classic 100th Day activity is always a favorite for my firsties! I simply set out a basket of 100 plastic cups and let students build! I love all the creative and different ideas they come up with for their structures!

Station 3 Hershey Kiss 100s Chart
I first saw this idea from Cara and was so excited to try it out with my kiddos! I labeled the bottom of hershey kisses with a dot sticker and wrote numbers from 1-100. (Confession- I may have used the same hershey kisses the past 2 years so I don't have to label new ones!!) Students work with their partner to pick a kiss from a basket and place it in the correct spot of the 100 chart. I made this activity a little more challenging for my first grade friends by giving them a blank 100 chart to use. They loved challenging their brains and I loved that they were building their number sense!




Station 4 100 Pattern Block Creation
Students begin by counting out 100 pattern blocks from a basket. I give them the suggestion to make 10 piles of 10 to help keep track! After counting out the blocks, they are free to build and create!

Station 5 100 Chart Puzzles
To create 100 Chart puzzles, take a 100 chart and cut into pieces. I print my 100s charts on different colors to keep them from getting mixed up. I cut some charts into bigger pieces and some charts into smaller pieces for different levels of challenge. I love using rainbow order for everything in my classroom, so students know that red is the easiest level and the puzzles get more challenging as they move through the colors of the rainbow. They love trying to get all the puzzles completed before time is up! Template for making puzzles is included in my 100th Day resource.

Station 6 100 Coin Flips
Students first make a prediction of which will win- heads or tails. Then, they flip a coin 100 times and record their data! In my 100th Day resource I included 2 versions of this activity. In one version, students record their data with tally marks. In the second version they color in a chart! After completing flipping their coin 100 times, they count their totals for heads and tails and write an equation the equals 100!



Station 7 Write 100 Words
Students grab a recording sheet and a clipboard and walk around the room searching for any words to write! Students can also write words they know- names, sight words, etc!




Station 8- Roll and Race to 100
This is a classic math station game that my students already know well! They get a 100 chart, roll two dice, and move their game piece that number of spaces! The first to get to 100 is the winner!



Station 9 100 Marshmallows and Toothpicks 
Students get a basket that contains 100 marshmallows and toothpicks. Their job is to build a structure using these materials. I also give them rulers to measure their creation when it is complete!

I hope you found some ideas that you can use to celebrate in your classroom! Happy 100th Day!

Check out my 100th Day Resources here!