As classrooms throughout Geneseo’s schools opened their doors for the 100th day of classes this school year, Thursday took on a special meaning for kindergarten students at Millikin, Northside and Southwest.
Mrs. Kim Rivera, who teaches kindergarten at Millikin, planned a full day of activities for her class to celebrate the school year’s 100th day and explained why it’s such a milestone for the children.
“They’ve accomplished a lot in 100 days,” stated Mrs. Rivera. “We’ve learned about language arts, math, science and social studies, but we’ve also learned how to resolve conflicts peacefully and work cooperatively with each other. A day like this gives us a time to reflect, but it’s also a time to set new goals for the remainder of the year.”
Mrs. Rivera said her class has been diligently counting down on their calendars to the 100th day since the first day of school.
“It’s helped the students understand numbers, place value, and how tens can get bundled up into a hundred,” she noted.
To celebrate the day, Mrs. Rivera encouraged her students to dress up as if they were 100 years old. Outfits included flat hats and canes, with some children featuring mustaches and wrinkles drawn on their faces.
Many of the lessons touched upon basic STEM principles (science, technology, engineering, and math) and language arts—Mrs. Rivera noted that the topics incorporated everything that a typical kindergarten class learns about on a given day, but with everything centered around the number 100.
Among the activities included splitting into two groups to see who could build the tallest tower using 100 Dixie cups, considering what students would do with $100, seeing how 100 of one item can look much different than 100 of another item, thinking about three “bucket list” things to do before turning 100 years old, and predicting how much water will be in a jar after 100 drops.
“The entire day is so much fun in part because it’s not our normal routine,” Mrs. Rivera said. “It’s still learning, though, and there is value in everything we did. But it was certainly a huge celebration for the students to recognize that they are 100 days smarter, and that’s enough reason to do a few fun things.”
