100 School Days

Rockwell, Anne. 100 School Days. HarperCollins, 2004.

100 School Days is an engaging story that is

rich with math learning and serves as a
great lead in to the 100th day of school. It
introduces the idea of collections to
represent the number of days in school and
includes important counting concepts. It
also emphasizes collaboration and sharing
amongst the children in the story.

Synopsis:
Mrs. Madoff’s class is adding pennies to a jar, one to represent each day of
school. When they reach a number of days that is a group of ten one student
brings a collection of items that match the number (10 balloons, 20 cars, 30
leaves). When they reach 100 days of school the children celebrate by bringing
a bag of 100 snack items to combine and share with the class.

Context:
I read this story as a lead in to the math activity: 100 collections. I share this
story the week before 100 day occurs and then send a letter home (see below)
to explain the students’ home task. With the support of their family, each child is
asked to collect 100 of the same items and bring them to school in a clear,
labelled jar. We brainstorm a variety of inexpensive, small items that can easily
be added to their jar. As a group at the carpet we explore the concept of
counting groups of ten and making ten piles of ten to equal 100 with math
manipulatives. With practice beforehand, students will be prepared to count
their collections at home.

Activity:
On the 100th day of school I reread 100 School Days. Children then have an
opportunity to share and talk about the collection they have brought: describe
how your items look/feel like, are they heavy/light, how much space do they take
up? Math concepts of counting and measurement can be developed through
examination and comparison of the collections.
Students would then spread their collection onto a table and show how they
count 10 groups of 10. The collection jars are displayed on a table where they
are accessible to view and investigate during play based learning time. A
balance scale, tape measure, ruler, magnifying glass, clipboards and pencils
are available to encourage investigation.

Skills:
Big Ideas
• One-to-one correspondence and a sense of 5 and 10 are essential for fluency
with numbers.
• Objects have attributes that can be described, measured and compared.
Curricular Competencies
• Model mathematics in contextualized experiences
• Develop, demonstrate and apply mathematical understanding through play,
inquiry and problem solving
• Communicate mathematical thinking in many ways
• Use mathematical vocabulary and language to contribute to mathematical
discussions
• Represent mathematical ideas in concrete, pictorial, and symbolic forms
• Reflect on mathematical thinking
Content
• Number concepts to 10
• Decomposition of numbers to 10
• Direct comparative measurement

HAPPY 100 DAYS OF SCHOOL!

Wednesday, February 13th will be the 100th day of

school for Division 8! Each student in grade one is
asked to gather and count 100 of one kind of item to
place inside a clear jar labelled with your child’s
name. These collections should be inexpensive and
small. Some suggestions are: macaroni, toothpicks,
cereal, beads, cotton balls, pennies or marshmallows.
We will be using our collections for a variety of Math
activities relating to 100 Day.

Please have your child bring his/her collection jar on or before the
100th Day, Wednesday February 13th.

Thank-you for your helping your child complete this home activity. Have fun
counting and feel free to be creative!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Ralfs