"Halfway to 100" Collages
Introduction
Fifty is an important number not only because it is five sets of ten but also because it is halfway to 100! In
Curious George Learns to Count, George counts all fifty states on the map. You can have your students create their own "Halfway to 100" collages in celebration of the halfway point as you count up to the 100th day of school.
Materials Needed
- One large piece of drawing or construction paper per student for use as background
- Various items (in baskets, one per table) to add to collage: scraps of fabric, magazine clippings, feathers, beads, bits of Styrofoam, buttons, etc. Use what you have available!
- Glue (small jars of plain white school glue and glue brushes work best, but glue sticks can be effective as well)
Background Knowledge
It is helpful if young children have had previous experiences with collage making so that they are not new to the concept or the skills involved. It can be helpful to introduce young children to collage by having them explore one new material at a time before providing them with many materials to choose from—for example, have them do one collage using only ripped paper. Have them do another collage using only fabric. This will help them get a sense of how the materials feel and what they can do.
Teaching
Tell your students that in celebration of the fiftieth day of school, they will be making collages using fifty items. Explore with your students how they plan to keep count. More experienced math students may be encouraged to group their pieces in tens ("How many groups of ten will you need to make fifty?" you might ask). Younger students might use strategies such as counting out fifty items before they begin creating the collage (you may want to provide paper bags for each child to collect their pieces in) or recounting to check how many pieces they have already glued down.
Activity
Send your students back to their tables. Each table should have a basket of mixed materials within reach of all the children. Provide each child with paper to glue his or her collage on, and if you like, a paper lunch bag in which to collect his or her fifty items. As your students work it can be interesting to notice how they arrange their materials. Some students will naturally organize their items by fives or tens. Some will think only of the picture. Neither approach has greater value.
Share
As children share their collages, it can be interesting to discuss which collages are easier to count. This can help children see how grouping items helps keep us organized as we count.
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