Name that Coin
Children love to look at coins but sometimes
cannot identify the coins or determine their value.
What you'll need
- Penny
- Nickel
- Dime
- Quarter
What to do
1. Look at the coins and talk about what
color they are, the pictures on them, and what they are worth.
2. Put a penny, nickel, and dime on the floor or table.
3. Tell your child that you are thinking of a coin.
4. Give your child hints to figure out which coin you are thinking
of. For example, "My coin has a man on one side, a building
on the other."
5. Let your child think about what you have said by looking at
the coins.
6. Ask, "Can you make a guess?"
7. Add another clue: "My coin is silver."
8. Keep giving clues until your child guesses the coin.
9. Add the quarter to the coins on the table and continue the
game.
10. Have your child give you clues for you to guess the coin.
This guessing game helps young children
learn to recognize coins and develop problem-solving and higher
level thinking skills.
Money Match
This game helps children count change.
Lots of repetition will make it even more effective.
What you'll need
- A die to roll
- 10 of each coin (penny, nickel, dime)
- 6 quarters
What to do
1. For young players (5- and 6-year-olds),
use only 2 different coins (pennies and nickels or nickels and
dimes). Older children can use all coins.
2. Explain that the object of the game is to be the first player
to earn a set amount (10 or 20 cents is a good amount).
3. The first player rolls the die and gets the number of pennies
shown on the die.
4. Players take turns rolling the die to collect additional coins.
5. As each player accumulates 5 pennies or more, the pennies
are traded for a nickel.
6. The first player to reach the set amount wins.
7. Add the quarter to the game when the children are ready.
Counting money, which involves counting
by 1s, 5s, 10s, and 25s, is a challenging skill and usually does
not come easily to children until about the third grade.
Money's Worth
When children use coins to play games,
it may help them use coins in real life situations.
What you'll need
What to do
1. Coin clues. Ask your child to gather
some change in his or her hand without showing what it is. Start
with amounts of 25 cents or less. Ask your child to tell you
how much money and how many coins there are. Guess which coins
are being held. For example, "I have 17 cents and 5 coins.
What coins do I have?" (3 nickels and 2 pennies.)
2. Clip and save. Cut out coupons and
tell how much money is saved with coins. For example, if you
save 20 cents on detergent, say 2 dimes. Ask your child what
could be purchased using the savings from the coupon. A pack
of gum? A pencil? How much money could be saved with 3, 4, or
5 coupons? How could that money be counted out in coins and bills?
What could be purchased with that savings? A pack of school paper?
A magazine? How much money could be saved with coupons for a
week's worth of groceries? How would that money be counted out?
What could be purchased with that savings? A book? A movie ticket?
Counting money involves thinking in patterns
or groups of amounts: 1s, 5s, 10s, 25s. Start these activities
by having your child first separate the coins or coupons by types:
all the pennies together, all the nickels, all the dimes, all
the quarters; the coupons for cereal, the coupons for cake and
brownie mixes, the coupons for soap.
In the News
Young children love to look at the newspaper.
It is fun for them to realize that there are things for them
to see and do with the paper.
What you'll need
- Newspaper
- Glue
- Paper
- Scissors
- Pencil or crayon
What to do
1. Newspaper numbers. Help your child
look for the numbers 1-100 in the paper. Cut the numbers out
and glue them in order onto a large piece of paper. For children
who cannot count to 100 or recognize numerals that large, only
collect up to the number they do know. Have your child say the
numbers to you and practice counting. Collect only numbers within
a certain range, like the numbers between 20 and 30. Arrange
the numbers on a chart, grouping all the numbers with 2s in them,
all the numbers with 5s, and so on.
2. Counting book. Cut out pictures from
the newspaper and use them to make a counting book. Page one
will have one thing on it, page 2 will have 2 things that are
alike, page 3 will have 3 things that are alike, and so on. All
the things on the pages have to be the same. At the bottom of
each page, write the number of items on the page and the word
for the item. Have your child dictate a story to you about what
is on the page. Being able to read and understand the newspaper
involves more than just the ability to read the words and understand
what they say. It also involves the ability to read and understand
numbers.
Look It Up
These activities help children understand
how items can be organized and grouped in logical ways.
What you'll need
- Newspaper
- Paper
- Scissors
- Glue
What to do
1. Section selection. Show your child
that the paper is divided into different sections and explain
that each section serves a purpose. Show him that each section
is lettered and how the pages are numbered.
2. Ad adventure. Provide your child with
grocery store ads from the newspaper. Help him see how many items
are listed and the prices. Compare the prices at different stores.
Ask which store has the best bargain and why. Talk about the
difference in prices between items bought at regular price, items
on sale, and items bought with coupons. What happens when an
item is bought on sale and bought with a coupon?
3. Solid search. Look at the store ads
or coupons for pictures of all the cylinders, boxes, or cubes
you can find. What are their different uses? Paste the pictures
on paper and make a "book of geometric solids." Have
one page for each solid.
Understanding that there is a logical
order to the way things are arranged in the newspaper, and in
the book of solids, helps show that math skills can be used in
organizing written material. Comparing information, such as the
sale prices at stores, also helps children see logical relationships
that can be applied to writing.
Newspaper Search
Search through the newspaper for mathematical
data.
What you'll need
What to do
1. Numbers in the news. Find the following
things in the paper: a graph a number less than 10 something
that comes in 2s, 3s, 4s a number more than 50 the days of the
week a number more than 100 a number that is more than 100 but
less than 999a symbol or word for inches, feet, or yards a schedule
of some kind a triangle a weather symbol a percent sign sports
statistics
2. List it. Provide your child with the
grocery section of the newspaper in order to make up a list of
food that will feed the family for a week and meet a budget of
a certain amount of money. Have your child make a chart and use
a calculator to figure the cost of more than one item. If the
total for the groceries is too great, talk about which items
can be eliminated. Could the list be cut down by a few items
or by buying less of another item? What will best serve the needs
of the family?.
3. For a fraction of the cost. Give your
child a few coupons and grocery ads from the paper. Help your
child match the coupons to some of the grocery items in the ad.
What fraction of the cost is the coupon? For example, if an item
costs 79 cents and the coupon is for 10 cents off, what fraction
of the cost can be saved? (About 1/8.) What percent are you saving
on the item? (About 12 1/2 percent.)