The 100th day of school will vary by school, but most schools celebrate in the month of February. This day marks being in school for 100 days and is a great time to engage students, families and the community in planning healthy and fun activities at school and at home.
Activity Ideas (At School and At Home)
100 second dance party: Play music. Dance for 100 seconds. Freeze. Then do it again! Change up the tunes and encourage children to reflect on how different beats change how they move or what they feel (physically and emotionally) after they move.
100 steps: Invite children to predict how far 100 steps will take them. To the next room? Outside? Test it out to see if 100 steps take them to their destination. If 100 steps falls short of the prediction, invite them to think of how many additional steps would be needed to get there. If they go past their prediction, put those match skills to test and find the difference.
100 moves: Invite children to make a list of different moves. Exercises, dance moves, gestures, animal moves – get creative! Take turns pulling from a hat or number them one through twelve and roll a pair of dice. In sets of ten, complete 100 moves. Some ideas:
Exercises: Jumping; Touching the toes, then the shoulders, then the waist; Hop on one foot; Jumping jacks; Arm circles
Get creative and invite children to reflect on how feelings would move. (E.g., Excited – jumping up and down; sad – slow arm circle, etc.)
100 points: Play a game and see who can earn 100 points first
100 lists: Work together to come up with a list of 100 things. Some ideas:
100 vegetables, fruits, and healthy snacks
100 words that start with _______
100 animals or insects
100 things that made you happy this year
Ideas to Bring Schools and Families Together
100 Ways to Give Back and Waste Less: Hold a community drive to collect 100 items to donate to a local charity or create a school pantry/library where students and families in need can access items. Things to collect:
100 canned goods/dry goods
100 winter clothing items (e.g., old jackets, hats, gloves)
100 old games/books/toys
100 Ways to Healthy: Can your community come up with 100 ways to stay healthy? Hang poster boards outside of the gym with markers and ask students to record one way they can stay active. Do the same thing outside of the cafeteria, asking students to record one way they can build healthier eating habits. Make another list in the hallway where students can list ways they can practice self-care and show support for others. Invite families to add to the lists at family events or at parent pick-up/drop off.
Halloween is synonymous with candy and can tempt your students to throw their healthy habits out of the window. Change their minds by introducing healthy Halloween treats and games as a fun alternative!