Learning about money — how to save it, share it, make it
and spend it — is usually of big interest to kids! So they‘re pretty motivated
to learn all about coins.
Understanding how to count, use, and identify coins is an
important basic money skill to learn at an early age. Using simple games, you
can help your kids learn to recognize and understand the value of our currency —
and help take the mystique out of those shiny, funny-looking little coins.
When to
do
Weekend day or weekday evening
What to
do
To introduce the coins and teach your kids about them,
here are three fun activities that you can try on a weekend or evening after
school.
1.
Throw a bunch of coins onto the ground and challenge
your kids to see who can:
§ Pick up
the most coins in a time period. Start with 10 seconds, then try 30 seconds,
then try one minute.
§ Pick up
coins worth the most money.
§ Pick up
coins worth an amount you specify.
§ Pick up
the most of one type of coin.
§ Pick up
the most of the type of coin worth 10 cents, the one worth 25 cents, or the one
worth 5 cents.
Invent
your own combinations of values to have them pick up until they
are really good at recognizing the different coins.
2.
Place coins under a sheet of paper and make pencil
rubbings to study the differences between different coins. You can find some
fun facts about each of the coins at the U.S. Mint website “History in Your
Pocket” (H.I.P.) Pocket
Change (http://www.usmint.gov/kids/coinNews/circulating/).
3.
Play the “How Many Coins?” game with any coin
denomination; for this example, we used pennies.
§ How many
pennies, aligned side-by-side, does it take to reach a foot? A yard? The length
of your shoe?
§ How many
pennies fit into a stack one inch high? How many fit into a stack one foot
high?
§ How many
pennies fit into a 1/4-cup container? A 1/2 cup? Is it twice as many as the 1/4
cup?
§ How many
pennies fit into an empty yogurt container (or other empty plastic container)?
§ Once you
determine the number of coins, can you calculate the value of the coins in the
containers?
What you
will need
Lot of coins (if you do not have enough loose change to
play the games, stop by your bank for a variety of coin rolls)
Paper; pencils or colored pencils
Measuring cups and plastic containers
Calculator
Talk
about it
Can you kids better report the names and values of the
coins after playing the coin games? Do they have a favorite type of coin? Can
they remember whose images are on each of the U.S. coins?
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