Counting Coins
Basics on the topic Counting Coins
Counting Coins
What does it mean to count coins? How to you count U.S. coins? In this video, we explore counting coins by adding the amount of each coin from largest to smallest. Take a look below to learn more about how to count U.S. coins.
Revision – American Coins
There are four different U.S. coins that are used and are counted by adding cents.
| Coin | Worth |
|---|---|
| 1 penny | 1 cents |
| 1 nickel | 5 cents |
| 1 dime | 10 cents |
| 1 quarter | 25 cents |
The quarter is the largest, and worth twenty-five cents.
The dime is the smallest, and worth ten cents.
The nickel is larger than the dime, but worth five cents.
The penny is copper in color and worth one cent.
Counting Strategies for American Coins
One of the strategies we can use to help us know how much money we have is to count by adding coins. When there is more than one type of coin like a quarter and a nickel it is called adding mixed coins.
| Step # | What to do |
|---|---|
| 1 | Label the amount of each coin. |
| 2 | Use a number line to add the values together. Start the number line with the largest value coin. |
| 3 | Skip-count forward small amounts of the other coins you need to add. |
| 4 | Find the total by looking at where we landed on the number line. |
Counting Coins – Example
Below is an example of some coins that Zuri needs to add in order to buy a new sticker. If she uses a number line to add them together, how much does the sticker cost?
Start by labeling the coins and put the largest value coin one the left of the number line.
The largest value coin here is the dime, so we can start with that.
Next, skip-count right the value of the other coins.
Finally, the number we land on is the cost.
If we skip-count forward the value of the other coins, what number do we land on?
We land on the number thirty-six, meaning Zuri’s new sticker costs thirty-six cents.
Counting Coins – Summary
Remember when learning how to count coins follow these steps:
Start by labeling the value of each coin.
Next, create a number line and put the largest value coin on the left.
Then, skip-count forward the values of the other coins.
Finally, the number you land on is the cost.
At the end of the video, there are exercises for continued practice of counting coins as well as counting coins worksheets.
Transcript Counting Coins
: "Man, I could really go for ice cream!." : "Did you see that? Ice cream!" : "Wow, there are so many options!" : "We will need to count our coins carefully to find out how much each item costs." : "Counting Coins" Zuri and Freddie are buying ice cream. They will need to add their coins to see what they can buy. In the United States, we use four different coins. The quarter is the largest, and worth twenty-five cents. The dime is the smallest, and worth ten cents. The nickel is larger than the dime, but worth five cents. The penny is copper, and is worth one cent. Let's see which ice cream Zuri and Freddie want. Zuri wants to buy the Purple Polkadot Blast, but needs to know how much it costs. Her first ice cream is three dimes, one nickel, and one penny. We can add the coins together to find the cost. First label the value of each coin. Now, let's use a number line to add the values together. Always begin your number line with the largest value coin. The dime is the largest value of the coins that Zuri has, so, we can start with ten. Then, skip count right by the value of each coin. We can skip count by tens for the dimes that we have. Then, we can skip count five more for the nickel. After, we can add on one for the penny. Finally, we find the cost by looking at where we landed on the number line. The number we landed on is thirty-six. Which means Zuri's ice cream costs thirty-six cents. Now, let's take a look at what Freddie wants to buy. : "Everything looks so good!" Freddie's first choice, the Rainbow Penguin Pop has seven coins that Freddie needs to count and add together. It has one quarter, four dimes, and two nickels. How much does his ice cream cost? Remember, start by labeling the value of each coin. Next, begin our number line with the largest value coin. The largest value coin that Freddie has is a quarter. That means we can put twenty-five at the start of our number line. The next step is to skip count on for each coin that we have. There are four dimes, so we can skip count by tens four times. Then, there are TWO nickels, which means we need to skip count forward by fives twice. The final step is to find the cost by looking at the final number we land on with the number line. How much does Freddie's ice cream cost? It costs him seventy-five cents. Before we see if Freddie and Zuri are enjoying their ice cream, let's summarize. Today we explored counting coins. We reviewed quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies. The quarter is the largest coin, and is worth twenty-five cents. Dimes are the smallest coin, and worth ten cents. Nickels are larger than dimes, but worth five cents. Pennies are copper in color and, worth one cent. We also practiced counting, or, adding coins using a number line. Remember, when counting coins using a number line, always start by labeling the coins you have. Next, begin your number line with the largest value coin. Then, use the value of each coin to skip count forward to find the price. Finally, find the total cost by looking at the final sum. Let's see how Zuri and Freddie are enjoying their ice cream! : "I think we got a little excited at the ice cream truck..." : " But it was tasty!"
Counting Coins exercise
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Can you find the correct combination of coins?
HintsHere is an example of how two coins could be added to make 15 ¢. Could you think of a similar combination to make 30 ¢?
Shown is how much each coin is worth.
Try adding up the coins in each of the images and see which ones equal 30 ¢. You should start with the coin that has the greatest value.
Make sure you have checked all of the combinations as there is more than one correct answer.
SolutionThese are the two combinations of coins that make 30 ¢.
One way is:
10 ¢ + 10 ¢ + 10 ¢ = 30 ¢
Another way is:
25 ¢ + 5 ¢ = 30 ¢
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Can you choose the correct coins for Zuri?
HintsThink about which numbers add together to 65. It might help to start by adding the coins with the greatest value.
Shown is how much each coin is worth.
Starting a number line like this might help you to add the coins together.
Using the number line above, you would start with the 25 ¢ coins.
SolutionThese are the coins that you would need to make 65 ¢.
25 ¢ + 25 ¢ = 50 ¢
50 ¢ + 10 ¢ = 60 ¢
60 ¢ + 5 ¢ = 65 ¢
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How many cents?
HintsUse a number line to add up the coins in the image to find the total amount.
Here is an example of adding coins on a number line to make 50 ¢.
shown are the values of each coin.
SolutionHere are some of the different ways you can make these amounts.
- 10 ¢ + 5 ¢ + 5 ¢ = 20 ¢
- 25 ¢ + 10 ¢ = 35 ¢
- 25 ¢ + 10 ¢ + 5 ¢ = 40 ¢
- 25 ¢ + 10 ¢ + 5 ¢ + 5 ¢ = 45 ¢
There weren't any coins that made 25 ¢ in this question. Can you think of any combinations of coins to make 25 ¢?
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Can you order the total amounts?
HintsAdd up the coins to find the total amount of each item.
Find the total of one ice cream order, then compare the totals of the others until all four are placed in the correct order from the highest value to the lowest value.
Shown are the values of each coin.
SolutionHere are the ice creams ordered from highest to lowest value.
- The two blueberry blasts cost 75 ¢:
50 ¢ + 25 ¢ = 75 ¢
- The sundae cost 70 ¢:
50 ¢ + 10 ¢ = 60 ¢
60 ¢ + 5 ¢ = 65 ¢
65 ¢ + 5 ¢ = 70 ¢
- The two purple polka dot blasts cost 63 ¢:
50 ¢ + 10 ¢ = 60 ¢
60 ¢ + 1 ¢ = 61 ¢
61 ¢ + 1 ¢ = 62 ¢
62 ¢ + 1 ¢ = 63 ¢
- The rainbow penguin pop cost 54 ¢:
35 ¢ + 5 ¢ = 40 ¢
40 ¢ + 5 ¢ = 45 ¢
45 ¢ + 5 ¢ = 50 ¢
50 ¢ + 1 ¢ = 51 ¢
51 ¢ + 1 ¢ = 52 ¢
52 ¢ + 1 ¢ = 53 ¢
53 ¢ + 1 ¢ = 54 ¢
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Can you match the coins to their value?
HintsThink about the colors and sizes of each coin.
Can you see any writing on the coin that might help you?
SolutionHere are the coins with their correct values.
Remember:
- The quarter is the biggest coin and is worth 25 ¢
- The dime is the smallest coin and is worth 10 ¢
- The nickel is the second largest coin and is worth 5 ¢
- The penny is the second smallest coin, is made out of copper and is worth 1 ¢
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Which coins do Freddie and Zuri need?
HintsUse a number line to add up the coins that you already know then see what amount is missing.
You could start a number line like this.
Once you know which amount is missing, think about which coins could be used to make that amount.
SolutionThe image shows you which coins to use to buy the rainbow penguin pop.
If we add up the two quarters we get 50 ¢. We know we need 65 ¢. The difference between 50 ¢ and 65 ¢ is 15 ¢. One way of making 15 ¢ is by using three nickels.
______________________________________________________
For the purple polka dot blast:
Adding up a quarter plus three pennies gives us 28 ¢. The difference between 28 ¢ and 38 ¢ is 10 ¢. One way of making 10 ¢ is by using a dime.
_________________
For the mint chocolate sundae:
Adding up 4 dimes gives us 40 ¢. The difference between 40 ¢ and 65 ¢ is 25 ¢. One way of making 25 ¢ is by using a quarter.
________________
For the blueberry blast:
Adding up a quarter and a nickel gives us 30 ¢. The difference between 30 ¢ and 50 ¢ is 20 ¢. One way of making 20 ¢ is by using two dimes.
It was fun and I learned a lot of things!
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