We use money to buy things, and knowing how to count it is a real-life skill you'll use forever. Coins come in different values, and adding them up tells you how much you have. This lesson shows how coins work and how to count a handful of them.
Coins have different values
Money comes as coins and notes (bills). Each coin is worth a certain amount, no matter its size — surprisingly, a small coin can be worth more than a bigger one. Common coin values are 1, 5, 10, and 25 cents, and 100 cents make one dollar.
The important idea is that a coin's value is what matters, not how big it is. You have to learn what each coin is worth, just like learning that a word means something.
Counting money
To find out how much money you have, you add up the values of all the coins. A helpful trick is to start with the biggest coins and count on. For a handful of coins, add them one at a time and keep a running total.
The coins below are 25, 10, 10, and 5 cents. Starting from the biggest: 25, then 35, then 45, then 50 — so altogether they make 50 cents.
Count on from the biggest: 25, 35, 45, 50 — the coins make 50¢.
Worked example
How much are a 10-cent, a 10-cent, and a 5-cent coin altogether?
Add the first two: 10 + 10 = 20.
Add the last one: 20 + 5.
Count on 5 from 20: 25.
Answer: 25 cents
Making an amount different ways
Here's something interesting: you can often make the same amount with different coins. Ten cents could be one 10-cent coin, or two 5-cent coins, or ten 1-cent coins — all worth the same. Being able to swap coins for others of equal value is really handy when paying and getting change.
When you buy something, you give money and get back change — the difference between what you paid and the price. Counting money and giving change use the same adding and subtracting you've been practising.
Check yourself
Try these. Pick an answer to see whether it's right and why.
What decides how much a coin is worth?
A coin's value is what matters — a small coin can be worth more than a bigger one.
How many cents make one dollar?
One dollar is made of 100 cents.
How much are a 10-cent, a 10-cent, and a 5-cent coin altogether?
10 + 10 = 20, then + 5 = 25 cents.
A good way to count a handful of coins is to:
Starting from the biggest coin and counting on keeps a clear running total.
Which of these also makes 10 cents?
Two 5-cent coins are worth 5 + 5 = 10 cents — the same as one 10-cent coin.
In a nutshell
Money comes as coins and notes; each coin has a value, and 100 cents make a dollar.
A coin's value matters, not its size.
Count money by adding the values, starting from the biggest coin and counting on.
The same amount can be made with different coins, and change is the difference between what you pay and the price.
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