100th Day Books and Ideas

Yes, it's that time of year. The 100th day of school will soon be celebrated in classrooms around the country. There are many great web sites that suggest activities for the 100th day of school, but since I'm all about using children's literature, here are some terrific books for both the study of place value AND the 100th day.

I want to start by highlighting two books that I'm particularly fond of.

Let's Count to 100!, written and illustrated by Masayuki Sebe - Open this book to find a series of vibrantly colored, highly detailed double-page spreads with all kinds of things to count. From mice to moles, sheep to cats, readers are asked to count and search through the graphics on each page. Here's a sample.

(You can view two more spreads at Kids Can Press.) Not only is this book great for basic counting skills, but you can use these spreads with older students to find fractions, decimals and percents. They'll be just as tickled with the illustrations and search and find fun.

100 Ways to Celebrate 100 Days by Bruce Goldstone is useful for the study of number sense and offers suggestions for celebrating the 100th day of school that extend well beyond traditional counting activities.

As a writer and photo stylist, Goldstone has created an amazing array of images in support of his imaginative ideas. Here's an excerpt from the middle of the book.

Flip 100. (46) Flip a coin 100 times. How many times will it land heads up?

Clip 100. (47) Clip together 100 paper clips.

Clap 100. (48) Clap 100 times.

Tip 100. (49) Line up 100 dominoes and then tip them over.

The activities recommended by Goldstone can be easily carried out at home or in the classroom. They don't require fancy or expensive materials, will keep kids engaged, and provide a springboard for brainstorming additional activities involving 100.

Okay, on to the list! These are in alphabetical order and all offer great ways to think about 100 and/or the 100th day of school.

98, 99, 100! Ready or Not, Here I Come!, written by Teddy Slater and illustrated by Gioia Fiammenghi  - This book in the Hello Math Reader series is about a group of girls playing hide-and-seek. In the course of their play they count to 100 by 5s, 10s, and 20s. Includes math activities by Marilyn Burns in the back matter.

100 Days of Cool, written by Stuart Murphy and illustrated by John Bendall-Brunello - In this MathStart book, 4 students dress up ("funky") for the first day of school thinking their teacher wants to celebrate cool, but she really wants to celebrate 100 days of school. She challenges them to keep it up for the next 99 days, but how will they do it? You can visit Stuart Murphy's web site to check out some suggested activities. (Scroll to the bottom of the page to find them.)

100 Days of School, written by Trudy Harris and illustrated by Beth Griffs Johnson  - This book presents many different ways to count to 100. "If 99 dots are on a clown's suit, what do you get? 100 polka dots. Those . . . (on his clothes) plus 1 on his nose."

100 Monsters in My School, written by Bonnie Bader and illustrated by Bryan Hendrix - At Frank N. Stein Elementary School there are 100 monsters--25 witches, 25 werewolves, 25 vampires, and 25 ghosts. What items will they bring for the 100th day of school? And what will the very human Jane Brain bring for show and tell? This is a level 2 book in the All Aboard Math Reader series. 

100 School Days, written by Anne Rockwell and Illustrated by Lizzy Rockwell - What happens when Mrs. Madoff's class counts a penny for each day they've been in school? Better yet, what happens when they get to 100? And what will they do with those pennies?

100th Day Worries, written by Margery Cuyler and illustrated by Arthur Howard - What's a young girl to do when she can't find a collection of 100 items to bring to school on the 100th day?

Centipede's One Hundred Shoes, written and illustrated by Tony Ross - Centipede goes to the shoe store for 100 shoes, 50 left and 50 right.

Counting Our Way to the 100th Day, written by Betsy Franco and illustrated by Steven Salerno - This book contains 100 poems for counting, math, school and everything in between. Each poem references the number 100.

Curious George Learns to Count From 1 to 100 by H. A. Rey - I'm a big fan of this little monkey. The man in the yellow hat challenges George to count to 100, so this book delivers many things to count, including a parade of ants, leaves blowing in the air, and rungs on a ladder.

Emily's First 100 Days of School by Rosemary Wells - Miss Cribbage tells her class that they will make a new number friend every day for the first 100 days of school, and everyone will have a number book in which to write their numbers and reflect on what they learn. From one to 100, Emily and From day one to day 100, Emily and her classmates expand their creative and mathematical skills as they immerse themselves in the exciting early days of school.

From One to One Hundred, written and illustrated by Terry Sloat - This terrific counting book counts from 1 to 10, and then by 10's to 100. The pictures are detailed and contain many things to count.

Happy 100th Day!, written by Susan Milord and illustrated by Mary Newell DePalma - Graham doesn't like school. The only thing he looks forward to is his class birthday party. What happens when Graham's special day falls on the 100th day of school? Will anyone remember his birthday? 

Henry's 100 Days of Kindergarten, written and illustrated by Nancy Carlson - On the first day of school, Henry's Kindergarten teacher tells the class that every day she will add a jellybean to a jar, and when it reaches 100 jellybeans the class will have a party. On the 100th day, students bring sets of 100 items to celebrate. Henry's contribution is a little different, as he brings his Great-Grandma Millie, who is 100 years old.

I'll Teach My Dog 100 Words, written by Michael Frith and illustrated by P.D. Eastman - First published in 1973, I recall reading this repeatedly to a few of my babysitting charges (yes, I'm THAT old!). The story is still one of my favorites. Use this for a different way to count to 100 and count the words involved. 

Jake's 100th Day of School, written by Lester Laminack and illustrated by Judy Love - While all of Jake's friends bring items to school (paperclips, bottle caps, etc.) for the 100th day, Jake forgets to bring the memory book into which he has glued 100 family pictures. With the help of his principal, he ends up with something to share, and something even more special on the 101st day.

Miss Bindergarten Celebrates the 100th Day of Kindergarten by Joseph Slate - On the eve of the 100th day of school, Miss Bindergarten asks her students to bring in "100 of some wonderful, one-hundred-full thing!" Find out what they bring and how the class celebrates. The illustrator, Ashely Wolff, has some ideas for celebrating the 100th day. Go on, take a look!

The Night Before the 100th Day of School, written by Natasha Wing and illustrated by Mindy Pierce - Here's a twist on The Night Before Christmas that looks at the night before the 100th day and a young boy who tries to figure out what to bring to school.

One Hundred Days (Plus One), written by Margaret McNamara and illustrated by Mike Gordon - Festivities are planned for the 100th day of school, but Hannah misses out when she's sick that day. What will the 101st day bring?

One Hundred Hungry Ants , written and illustrated by Eleanor Pinczes - Find out all the different ways a group of ants can arrange themselves while marching to a picnic.

One Hundred Is a Family by Pam Muñoz Ryan - This books looks at all the different ways people can come together to become "a family."

One Hundred Shoes: A Math Reader, written by Charles Ghigna and illustrated by Bob Staake - Centipede needs shoes for his feet. Where does he go? What does he choose? Written in rhyme, students will love the rhythm of the story. Along the way they'll learn about multiples of 100.

One Hundred Ways To Get To 100, written by Jerry Pallotta and illustrated by Rob Bolster - This title isn't in print any longer, but I can't take it off the list. If you can get your hands on this gem, don't ever let it go. This one teaches counting by 1s, 2s, 4s, 10s, 20s, and so on. Add to this some terrific illustrations with lots to count and you have a winner. 

Ready, Set, 100th Day!, written and illustrated by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace - Minna is looking for the perfect set of materials to bring for her 100th day project. She tries out different sets of objects, arranging them in sets and playing with them. She tries popsicle sticks, pom-poms, pasta, paper clips and more. While Minna plays with sets, readers learn about different multiples of 100.

The Wolf's Chicken Stew, written and illustrated by Keiko Kasza - A hungry wolf delivers 100 pancakes, 100 donuts and a 100 pound cake to a chicken he wants to fatten up for a stew. When he arrives to retrieve the chicken, he gets a big surprise!

Once you've done some reading, why not create a class book for the 100th day? ReadWriteThink has a fabulous lesson on Descriptive Writing and the 100th Day of School. All students bring in a bottle containing 100 items. Along with this they write descriptive clues about the mystery items. Once the items have been revealed, students complete the pages of a book about the bottles and their contents.

Need more ideas? Check out my 100th Day Pinterest board.

Teaching Blog Addict has a 100th Day of School Ideas post where they are collecting a wide range of posts from classroom teachers .

In the states where the school year often begins after Labor Day, the 100th day generally falls close to Valentine's Day (snow days not withstanding), so you've got plenty of time to prepare. Here are some additional resources that will help you plan for the 100th day of school.

• Mathwire.com 100th Day of School Activities
• Songs and Poems for the 100th Day of School
• Celebrate the 100th Day of School (Scholastic)
• Celebrate the 100th Day in 100 Ways

Do you celebrate the 100th day with some great books, poems or songs? I'll bet you do, so please share!