Money, money, money!

A few weeks ago we realized that Penelope's piggy bank was getting very heavy! Probably because she tends to put any change she finds around the house in her piggy bank. So, it was time to cash it out! I thought about going to the bank to get change sleeves, but realized that would be very time consuming and with Cooper already putting everything in his mouth, it could be very dangerous! I decided we would head to Harris Teeter to use their change machine. I know that you can throw the change into the machine and it will the be organized and counted for you, but where is the fun in that? 

We waited for Cooper to go down for his nap one day and let the fun begin. I wrote the name of each coin on a plate (no, Penelope cannot read, but it is so valuable to label everything, no matter the age!) 

As we emptied out the piggy bank, Penelope organized the coins onto their labeled plates. We did go over the different coins and what they look like. As to be expected, nickles, dimes and quarters got confused a little. I made sure to repeat the name of the coin as she was placing it on a plate, or show her where a coin went when she had placed it on the wrong plate. 

We the poured each plate into a bag and took this very heavy organized money to Harris Teeter! 

When it was all said and done, Penelope had "saved" a bunch of money! So much so, that she decided to use some of it to buy her daddy a birthday present, and the rest to buy herself a special treat (Doc McStuffins mini Duplo set). 

                          In the Classroom

I found money to be a very tricky skill for many students. Not only is the differentiation of coins hard, but remembering the coin value is too. I vividly remember how confident students became as we worked with coins and then the day arrived when we started to add different coins together, and it was as if the universe was playing some evil joke on them! 

Having students organize a big bag of coins would be a great way to get started working on money. Doing just as Penelope did would get the ball rolling in class. It isn't a standard focus in the lower grades anymore- K/1 (maybe because it can be so frustrating for those young thinkers!) but introducing money through different standards can build confidence and help prepare your younger learners for what is coming! 
     Have them take it in a different direction by graphing the number of coins they had on each plate.
     Need to push some a little further? Encourage students who can to add up the value on each plate! 

Click here to find a Money Grab Game Packet!