Part math lesson, part celebration, the first 100 days of school present an opportunity to understand the concept of one hundred with fun activities and events. In this article, you’ll learn more about the history of 100 days of school celebrations and access activities to share with elementary school students.

Reasons to Celebrate 100 Days of School

Many elementary schools celebrate 100 days of school with students, a milestone in which the 180-day school year is more than halfway complete. Depending on the start of the school year, many schools celebrate the 100th day of school around the month of February or March. Celebrating 100 days of school is an opportunity to reflect on all the learning that has taken place so far. For young children, 100 can feel like such a big number! Students in kindergarten and the early primary grades are just learning to understand one hundred conceptually and to see it in perspective. A 100 days of school celebration can help children do just this.

100 Days of School History

The first 100 days of school celebration was planned by Lynn Taylor, a California teacher, in 1979. Her goal was to help her students understand the concrete lesson of the number 100. When she wrote about her celebration in an article about teaching mathematics, the idea took hold. For more than 40 years, students and teachers have been celebrating 100 days of school with events, activities, and games that look at the number one hundred in engaging and meaningful ways!

100 Days of School Activity Suggestions

Here are some 100-Day activities that can work for many grade levels. Give one a try.

1. Have a classroom countdown from 100 to 1, to mark the 100^th day of school.
2. Give students this prompt and the direction to paint a picture with words by describing or drawing in detail what they imagine: "When I am 100 years old,..."
3. Ask students to fill in these blanks with as many things as they can‚ maybe even 100! Have a contest to see who can name the most items. "100 ________ is a lot. 100 _________ is not very many."
4. Count up to and down from 100.
5. Give each student or group of students 100 small items that can be stacked in some way. Then, ask them to build a 100-item structure. See how creative they can be! Possible items include toothpicks, paperclips, playing cards, poker chips, pennies, letter tiles, and mini marshmallows.
6. Have students list 100 things they've accomplished in their lifetimes.
7. As a class, research to find 100 events of significance that have occurred in the past 100 years.
8. Set a goal as a class to complete 100 acts of kindness. Chart the acts on a bulletin board.
9. Brainstorm all the things there are at least 100 of in your school.
10. Think of 100 different words to use in place of the word said when writing.
11. On the playground or field, take 100 steps in various directions. Map where the steps take you.
12. Figure out where you'd be if you traveled 100 miles from your school to the north, east, south, and west.
13. List 100 different colors.
14. Challenge students to write stories of exactly 100 words.
15. Skip count to 100 by 1s, 2s, 5s, 10s, 20s and 25s.
16. Fill in a blank hundreds chart.
17. Complete a 100 days of school coloring page or class poster.
18. Using 100 colored beads or colored cereal loops, have each students string a 100 days of school necklace.
19. Figure out how many ways there are (which coins and how many) to "make" 100 cents.
20. Have a 100 days of school party in which students can select fun activities from a menu of options, each with a different assigned point value. Students' chosen activities must total 100 points.
21. As a class, list 100 things you are grateful for.
22. Invite students to bring in 100 of a (small) item to school and share it with the class.
23. Dress like a centenarian. Invite children to come to school in costume, dressed the way they will look when they are 100 years old.
24. Read a book about one hundred.
25. Note 100 things that your class has learned this year so far.
26. Host a scavenger hunt that involves students finding 100 items.
27. Invite families to participate in your 100 days of school activities and celebrations by communicating with them in advance.
28. Invite your class, teams, or individual students to write 100 words they know.
29. Play the popular math game “Race to 100.”
30. Invite students to respond to the writing prompt, “If I had $100…”

There are hundreds of ways to celebrate 100 days of school. No matter which ways you celebrate, 100 days of school give your students an opportunity to think deeply about the concept of one hundred and celebrate a big milestone in the school year. Enjoy your 100th day of school!