How do you count the days in school?

I've tried counting the days in school several ways but have never been satisfied with anything...until now.  In the past, I used bundles of sticks and bundles of straws.  I never really felt that my kids were making the connection between that bundle  and a group of tens. It was too abstract for them.

This year, I've used ten-frames for teaching subitizing and unitizing. That's when it hit me that I should probably add ten frames to my calendar  time.

Of course, I always have to have something cute...plain black and white ten-frames would never do. So, I created a larger, cuter set of ten-frames to use on my math focus wall. Now my kids are engaged in counting the days and all of that great math content that goes along with it.

 

So how do you count the days in school with your students?