Catching up–100th Day

Phew – it’s been crazy these last few weeks!The weather was a balmy 40 degrees here in the upper midwest, and I think we all are getting a little loopy!  But, mother nature is just playing a cruel trick on us – melting the snow, teasing us that we can put away our thick parkas…Friday it is supposed to get cold again…and snow…. which my husband is okay with since he wants to ski more! 

Here are my sweet little snow bunnies Their Norwegian grandparents had them on skis when they were both 3.  Honestly, I wouldn’t mind a bit more snow so we can ski some more! {Mostly to see how adorable these two are when they ski!}

Anyways… on to 100th day.  Here is a glimpse of the fun and excitement we had!

Yay!! It’s a party! Boy, were the kiddos excited to see this! Can you believe it stayed in one piece for the whole day!?

I decided to set up 5 rotating centers throughout the day.  I had to stay pretty tight on the 25 minute allotment for each center.  I whipped up this little chart to keep the flow.  The kids do so much better when they can SEE where they are going next.  {It’s not super cute – did it on the fly – I need “fancy it up” for next year – as Kim A. would say!}

I set up everything the night before, so I wouldn’t have ANY stress in the morning!

On the agenda:

1. Hats.  We have an AMAZING volunteer come into our school to put together all sorts of things for teachers – she assembled these hats for me.  In the past, I’ve had kids put 10 stickers on each strip, but I’ve also used letter stamps and had them stamp 10  letters on each strip.

 

2. Necklaces: I use the “melty” beads.  I’ve used this jar for 3 years, and I think I’ve got a few more left in it! Grab a Michael’s coupon and get one so you’re ready for next year!  I cut off two of the sections of the egg cartons and labeled each section {10, 20, 30, etc.}  I also placed inside the divider for each section.  It takes the kiddos a while to count out and string the beads, so I give them all the help I can!

3. Counting 100 legos {In groups of 10} and building a lego sculpture.  This one was FANTASTIC to have as a center, because it didn’t really take any teacher support.  IF they finished their sculpture {I think only 1 or 2 did} they could draw a picture of it.

4. 100 Dots: I use bingo dobbers for this one.  The kids dob 10 in each section.  My colleagues have used stickers as well.  Each family sends in 100 stickers, and the kids count out 10 stickers for each section.

When they were finished with their dobbing, the kids then drew themselves and their classmates that have been with them for 100 days! Too cute – don’t you love the pink eyes? And the multi-cultural pictures

5. When I am 100 portraits.  This idea is from Deanna Jump.  LOVE LOVE LOVE this one!  Their elderly versions of themselves turned out so stinkin’ cute!!

This isn’t the greatest picture, but the kids also went on a 100th day scavenger hunt – they have to tally 10 of each thing on their sheet. (windows, blocks, markers, etc.)

Each family brought in one item and we put together a 100th day trail mix.  This is what I do to manage it well:  I have everything all laid out and ready to go – the children each have their 100s grid.  Each table has a plate in the middle of the table – I fill that plate with each item and they count out 10 and place it on their 100s grid.  As each table is counting, I pour out the next item on another set of plates.  When they are done, I switch them out.  Any extras go in a big plastic baggie.  It really works smoothly once I get moving!  I tell the kids if they talk too much, I’ll eat one of their pieces! They DO NOT like that! The room is virtually silent!  This works really well for me and the children can really SEE how much 100 is.

This is another favorite of mine – we read this book:

And discuss what she was worried about. Then each child gets a baggie to bring home to collect 100 items.  I stress that they bring in 100 of the same item so the kids can see what 100 looks like in so many different ways.  These are hanging on the bulletin board outside me room … those pretzel M&M’s taunt me everytime I walk by

I also have an assessment packet that I have the kids work on throughout the day and the next day.  They write to 100 by 1s, 2s,5s, and 10s (if they can!), they draw and label their friends, write words they know, write math problems, make patterns, and so on!

My first grade neighbor had her kids gather 100 items from around the room … another fun – no stress activity to do on the fly!

I hope you all had a fantastic 100th day!