Helping Children Learn About Money
By Connie Limon
Help your kids learn about money and how coins and bills work with games. When I was a kid I was absolutely fascinated with coins and bills of money. In this article you will read instructions for three different money games:
• Coin Identification Game
• Money Bingo
• Price Tag Games
The Coin Identification Game
Teach your kids the differences between one coin and another as you play the coin identification game. What you will need for this game:
• Four jars, each marked with the names of the coin that jar will represent, for example, the penny jar should be labeled: “penny, one cent,” the nickel jar “Nickel, five cents, and so on. Place a few coins of the right denomination in each jar.
• A dish and a bunch of coins of different denominations
How to play the coin identification game:
• Pick up a coin from the dish, tell the child what it is, and have the child repeat the name of the coin and put it in the right jar.
• Add another challenge by naming the coin and asking the child to give the other name for it, such as “quarter,” “twenty-five cents.”
Another game you can play with your child to help them learn about money is called:
Money Bingo
The objective of money bingo is to fill up a bingo card. If there is more than one child in the game, then it is whoever becomes first to fill up a bingo card.
What you will need for money bingo:
• Pieces of cardboard for your bingo cards
• Put 25 circles on each card, five rows of five circles. Make the circles by tracing around coins - - pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters. Write the value of each coin in the center of the circle in numerals such as 25, 5 and so on.
• Make different cards with the circles in different orders and different numbers on each coin such as three nickels and eight quarters on one, five nickels and six quarters on the next and so on.
• A pile of coins for each child
How to play money bingo:
• Hold up a coin and say its name, not its value, such as penny, nickel, dime or quarter.
• Each child has to fill in all the circles on his or her card with a coin in the right denomination.
• After four rounds, the one who has filled the most spaces wins the game.
• If all players fill up their whole cards, everyone wins.
Money bingo teaches a child coin identification, but also other important life lessons. The exchange of money for goods is a life skill that is performed under pressure. To purchase something, you have to come up with the right amount of money and give it to someone in exchange for goods or services. The other person also expects you to do this promptly so there is time pressure involved with the exchange of money for goods or services. Suppose you give more money than the right amount, you should get back change that you will need to count quickly to be sure it is correct. The play pressure of money bingo can help children get use to the skills of handling and exchanging money for goods and services.
The Price Tag Game
The objective of the price tag game is to match the item to its price.
What you will need:
• Canned or packaged goods with price tags on them
• Piles of coins of different denominations
How to play the price tag game:
• The child reads the price on the item (with your help if necessary)
• She or he then takes coins from the piles and stacks them next to the item until she has matched
the amount stated for the item.
• Then the money goes back into the piles
• Start with simple items such as something that costs a quarter, which will require only one coin
• Gradually work up to more expensive items to further challenge the child’s counting ability.
The price tag game teaches a child the relationship of money to goods. For variety you can change the items, or add new items, each time you play the game. Use household items such as a bar of soap or a package of toilet paper and kid’s items such as favorite toys, coloring books and crayons. In this manner you begin to teach the child how to notice the relative value of things.
Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for informed medical advice or care. You should not use the information in this article to diagnose or treat any health problems or illnesses without consulting your pediatrician or family doctor. Please consult a doctor with any questions or concerns you might have regarding your or your child’s condition.
This article is FREE to publish with the resource box.
About the Author: Connie Limon. Visit us at http://www.babiesandtoddlers1.com About Babies and Toddlers is a collection of articles all about babies and toddlers available for information, education and FREE reprints to your newsletters, websites or blogs.
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