Now and Then... The Beginning

I am Charlotte Wilson, a kindergarten teacher at Vestavia Hills Elementary East.

We have been in school 100 days!!! The official day was January 23, 2007. This is such a "big deal" in kindergarten! We have been preparing for this all year.

When we returned to school after the holidays we began collecting canned goods. Our goal was to collect 100 cans of food by the 100th day of school. We line the cans up in the hall outside our classroom. A number is written on the top of each can. It is a great way to practice counting. We use the cans for sorting activities. We sort according to kinds of food, brands, sizes of the cans, and label colors. This is just an excellent way to help the children develop a concept of what 100 really is.

The best part of this activity is that it gives the children a true hands-on opportunity to help others. The food is donated to THE UNITED WAY to be distributed to local food banks. THE UNITED WAY brings large barrels to school and places them at the end of our hall. On the 100th day of school the children gather the cans and walk down the hall to place them in the barrels. This is the moment when they can see the goodness of their work. We have done this at Vestavia East for several years. All kindergarten classes participate in the project. Even some classes in other grades have joined us!

As we consider what 100 really is, we look at 100 in the area of time. We reflect on 100 years ago. This is where our project begins. We are gathering information about life 100 years ago and comparing it to our life now. Please stay tuned and watch our project develop right before your eyes!!