Grade 1: Counting Coins

Warm up with a quick recall on the board. Sort coins by value, count on from the largest, and swap equivalent amounts (five 20c = $1). Use real or play money for the country you teach in.

Counting coins means finding the total value of a handful of coins. The tricky part is that a coin's value is not its size: a small coin can be worth more than a big one. Counting is quickest when you start from the highest-value coin and count on. Model the method clearly, thinking aloud:

• Learn each coin's value by heart first, separate from its size, since size is a misleading clue.
• Sort the coins from highest value to lowest before counting.
• Count on from the largest: start at the biggest coin's value and add each smaller coin in turn.
• Group coins that make a round number (two 50s make a dollar) to keep the running total tidy.
• Move on to writing the total with a dollar sign and decimal point, and then to making change.

Do the first few questions of the practice worksheet together, one child explaining each step. Check for understanding before releasing the class to work alone.

Students complete the worksheet independently. Hand out the three difficulty levels below so every child works at the right stretch.

Circulate and look for these, they are the usual sticking points:

• Valuing coins by size rather than by their marked worth.
• Counting the number of coins instead of their total value.
• Losing the running total when mixed coins are not sorted first.
• Forgetting to convert 100 cents into one dollar.
• Counting the number of coins instead of their total value, and mixing dollars and cents.

Pull the class back together. Ask one child to explain counting coins in their own words, pose a single check question everyone answers on a mini whiteboard, and name what you will build on next lesson.

Use the independent worksheet as the evidence. A child who can complete it accurately and explain one answer has met the objective; anyone who cannot needs the easier level and a short reteach next session.