Date: Fri 20-Feb-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: DOTTIE

Quick Words:

schools-100-Middle-Gate

Full Text:

Middle Gate Marks 100th Day Of School

(with cuts)

BY DOROTHY EVANS

The number 100 might not mean much to a little boy who can show how old he is

by holding up eight fingers -- four on each hand.

But it wouldn't take long at all for him to count out 100 chocolate chip

morsels -- and eat at least ten more -- or spell his name with 100 stars glued

onto a piece of red poster board.

Trying to understand all about the number 100 was the theme of Middle Gate's

"Schoolwide Math Day" project held last Friday, February 13.

It was an occasion for teachers and students to test their creativity and

surprise themselves, finding out there were at least 100 times 100 ways to

illustrate the big One-Zero-Zero.

They entered school by crawling through a hole in the middle zero of a

four-foot stand-up 100 sign. They counted 100 geometrical shapes. They stacked

100 acorn caps. They did 100 jumping jacks.

They made 100 dollar bills with their own pictures pasted into the place where

Benjamin Franklin usually goes.

Once the children had gotten a good idea about exactly what 100 items of the

same kind looked like when lumped together, their teachers asked them to think

about something else.

How long is 100 years?

To do this, the teachers listed a few select but important "100-years-ago

events" on a bulletin board outside the school library and asked the children

to discuss them.

For example, approximately 100 years ago the zipper was invented, the first

X-Ray was taken, H.G. Wells wrote The War of the Worlds , Babe Ruth was born,

William McKinley was president and "we grew our own food."

What really caught their attention, however, was the statement that 100 years

ago, "Joey's great-great-grandmother had just turned six."

Wow!