How to teach counting coins

Sort the coins from highest value to lowest, then count on from the largest, adding each smaller coin in turn. Grouping coins that make a round number, such as two 50-cent coins making a dollar, keeps the running total tidy and reduces mistakes.

Counting coins is usually taught from Grade 1 to Grade 4. Younger children learn each coin's value and find simple totals, while older ones count mixed coins, write the total with a dollar sign and decimal point, and move on to making change.

Coin sizes do not match their worth, so a small coin can be worth more than a large one. This is the trickiest part of counting coins, because size is a misleading clue. Children need to learn each coin's marked value by heart, separate from how big it looks.

Common problems are valuing coins by their size rather than their marked worth, counting the number of coins instead of their total value, losing the running total when mixed coins are not sorted first, and forgetting to convert 100 cents into a dollar. Sorting highest to lowest first helps.

They should know each coin's value by heart, separate from its size, and be able to skip count and add. Because size is a misleading clue to value, learning the coin values securely first is the key foundation for counting a mixed handful.

There are 100 cents in a dollar. When counting coins, once the cents reach 100 you convert them into one dollar. Forgetting to do this is a common error, so it is worth practising grouping coins up to a dollar as part of counting.

Once children can total a mix of coins, they move on to writing the amount with a dollar sign and decimal point, and then to making change by counting up from a price. Counting coins also supports decimals, since cents are hundredths of a dollar.