Lesson Plan

An Introduction to Coins

Main Subject Area: Mathematics

Additional Subjects: Language Arts, Science, Social Studies

Duration of Lesson:  45 minutes

Keywords:

• Coins
• Dime
• Money
• Nickel
• Penny
• Value

Brief Description:

Early elementary students will examine the features and values of pennies, nickels, and dimes.

National Standard(s):

• Number and Operations
• Communication
• Connections

Additional Subject Area Standard(s):

• Demonstrate competence in speaking and listening as tools for learning
• Individuals, Groups, and Institutions
• People, Places, and Environment
• Science as inquiry

Objectives:

Students will examine different coins and identify their characteristics and value.

Students will place coins in order according to value.

Materials (online):

Materials (offline):

For each student: 1 Mint or cough drop tin

10 pennies, 5 nickels, and 5 dimes (real) for each tin

large paper coins (for whole class instruction)

Coins Used in Lesson:

Circulating U.S. pennies, nickels, and dimes

Grade Level(s):   K-2  

Procedures (online):

Procedures (offline):

1. Start this lesson by placing a handful of coins in a spot where all the children can see them. Ask your students what they see. Continue the discussion by asking, “What do we use coins for? Do you ever use coins? When have you used coins?”

2. Explain that over the next few days you will be looking closely at coins to learn how to use them correctly.

3. Rules of activity: Each child will be given a box of coins. Until all directions are given, the coins are to remain in their boxes. All coins and boxes MUST remain in their work areas at all times (whether on the floor or on their desks). When the class uses the coins, just take out the number of coins they will need to do the problem.

4. Distribute the boxes of coins to each child.

5. Begin by having the students take a penny out of their box and let them look at it.

6.Ask several questions and chart their responses by using a web as a graphic organizer.

- Can anyone tell me what this coin is called?

- Just by looking at the coin what can you tell me about it?

- Does anyone know whose face is on the coin?

- What do you know about this person (Build on this a little)?

- Have you ever seen the building on the back of this coin (reverse)?

- What is this building called?

- Does this coin have writing on it? What does it say?

- What does ‘Liberty’ mean? Why might this coin say Liberty on it?

7. Direct their attention to where the coin says “One Cent” and explain that every coin has a value. Write this word on the board and see if the students know what “value” means.

8. Have your students put the penny back in the box and take out a nickel to examine.

9. Ask similar questions as asked in step 6, and chart the responses on a new web. See if your students can find the value of the nickel. If a penny is worth one cent, and a nickel is worth 5 cents, how many pennies equal a nickel?

10. Have your students put the nickel back in the box and take out a dime to examine.

11. Ask similar questions as asked in step 6, and chart the responses on a new web. Mention that there is a memorial to FDR in Washington, DC, but it is not on the reverse. What is on the coin’s reverse instead? See if your students can find the value of the dime. If a penny is worth one cent, and a dime is worth 10 cents, how many pennies equal a dime?

12. Review the values of each coin and ask which coin has the greatest value? Which has the least value? Which is the largest coin? Which is the smallest coin? Does it matter which coin is biggest in size? Why or why not?

13. Have the students lay out all their dimes in a row and count them. How many do they have?

14. Now, have the students take out the rest of their coins and continue the row by placing the coins in order of the ones with the greatest value to the ones worth the least value. What comes after dimes? How many nickels do they have? What comes after nickels? How many pennies do they have?

15. As a class count the value of all the pennies (1,2,3…10 cents). Do the same thing with nickels (5,10,15…25 cents) and dimes (10,20,30…50 cents).

16. Discuss the fact that even though there are more pennies than dimes in the box, the dimes are worth much more than the pennies. And even though there are the same number of nickels and dimes, the dimes are worth more money than the nickels.

Assessment / Evaluation:

Did the students participate in the discussion about the different coins? Were they able to differentiate between the coins? Were they able to organize the coins? Did the student demonstrate the understanding of the meaning value? Did the students learn the value of each coin?

Differentiated Learning Options:

As a follow up to this activity, give your students a homemade worksheet where they have to cut out and match the front and back of the different coins. Have them paste their coins to a blank piece of paper and write the coin’s value next to each pair and check their answers with a partner.