Children will use math concepts presented in the book to develop counting, addition, grouping, and problem-solving skills.

Subject Area: Math, Language Arts

Book Summary

This fast-paced story describes the ways Miss Hill's class uses math concepts to celebrate the 100th day of school. Contains activities at the end of the book.
 

Before Reading

Show the class the book The 100th Day of School by Angela Shelf Medearis. Ask the children to predict what might happen in the story. Has your class been counting the days of school? What have they been doing to record the days? If your class hasn't been counting the days, start now!

Teaching Plan: Ideas From Miss Hill's Class

Materials

• 400 counters (beans, cubes, buttons, paper clips, paper shapes, discs)
• Chart paper
• Marker

Activity

1. Invite the students to a meeting area and read the story. Ask the class to describe the four different ways Jill, Ben, Kate, and Jack counted or grouped one hundred in the story.
2. Divide the children into four separate teams. Give each team one hundred counters. Have them copy one of the number groupings depicted in the book. Assign an area on the floor to present their groupings. Engage the class in a discussion about each group.
3. Now invite the class to compose an addition sentence for each group, i.e. 20 + 20 + 20+ 20 + 20 = 100. Record their sentences on chart paper.
4. Continue using the book during small-group time to count and group 100. Place the book in the math area and invite the children to read and count alone or with a friend.

100 Activities Challenge

Materials

• Large sheet of paper (mural paper)
• Marker
• Camera and film
• Drawing and writing materials

Activity

1. Make five separate columns on a large sheet paper. Write the following heading in each column: "Things to Make," "Things to Write About," "Things to Draw," "Things to Do With Our Bodies," and "Things to Count."
2. Review the topics with the class. Can they think of 100 different types of activities that are based on the topics presented? They may need a few days to think of ideas and compile their lists. (For example: "Things to Do With Our Bodies" - hop on one foot, snap fingers, touch toes, clap hands, etc.).
3. Now invite the group to do the 100 activities. Work with the children to decide how the activities will be completed. Some activities can be done in large-group activities, small-group activities, individual projects, and take-home activities. Now it's time to begin the 100-activity challenge.
4. To celebrate their math challenge victory, create a display to document the completed activities. Include photographs to document activities and children's writings about their experiences. Bake 100 cookies to celebrate!

End-of-the Book Activities

Included with the book are a variety of related classroom and take-home activities to develop word recognition, word- and sentence-building skills, punctuation awareness, phonemic awareness, and writing skills.

Other Books About the 100th Day of School

Miss Bindergarten Celebrates the 100th Day of Kindergarten
by Joseph Ashley
A humorous account of how Miss Bindergarten's class celebrated the 100 days of school.

Fluffy's 100th Day of School (Hello Reader! Series)
by Kate McMullan
An adorable classroom pet guinea pig joins the class's 100 days of school celebration.

100th Day Worries
by Margery Cuyler
Jessica worries about everything. Now she cannot stop worrying about what to bring for her classroom's 100 days of school celebration.

Other Books by Angela Shelf Medearis

We Eat Dinner in the Bathtub (Hello Reader! Series)
Seeds Grow (My First Hello Reader! Series)
We Play on a Rainy Day (Hello Reader! Series)