Names and Values of Common Coins
š° Money makes the world go round! Let's learn about the four coins you'll use most: pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters. Each coin has a special name, look, and value!
Do this: Read the concept below, then try the quiz or activity.
Concept
Learning coins is an important life skill! Here's everything you need to know:
šŖ THE FOUR MAIN COINS:
1. PENNY (1Ā¢) ā¢ Worth: 1 cent ā¢ Color: Copper/brown ā¢ Size: Small ā¢ Picture: Abraham Lincoln ā¢ Remember: "Penny = one cent" ā¢ Symbol: 1Ā¢ or $0.01
2. NICKEL (5Ā¢) ā¢ Worth: 5 cents ā¢ Color: Silver ā¢ Size: Bigger than a penny ā¢ Picture: Thomas Jefferson ā¢ Remember: "Nickel = 5 cents = 5 pennies" ā¢ Symbol: 5Ā¢ or $0.05
3. DIME (10Ā¢) ā¢ Worth: 10 cents ā¢ Color: Silver ā¢ Size: Smallest coin (tricky!) ā¢ Picture: Franklin D. Roosevelt ā¢ Remember: "Dime = 10 cents = 2 nickels = 10 pennies" ā¢ Symbol: 10Ā¢ or $0.10 ā¢ Fun fact: Even though it's smallest, it's worth the most of these three!
4. QUARTER (25Ā¢) ā¢ Worth: 25 cents ā¢ Color: Silver ā¢ Size: Biggest coin ā¢ Picture: George Washington ā¢ Remember: "Quarter = 25 cents = 5 nickels = 2 dimes + 1 nickel" ā¢ Symbol: 25Ā¢ or $0.25 ā¢ Fun fact: It's called a "quarter" because it's 1/4 of a dollar!
š” Coin Comparison: From least to most value: Penny (1Ā¢) < Nickel (5Ā¢) < Dime (10Ā¢) < Quarter (25Ā¢)
šÆ Memory Tricks: ā¢ Penny = P = One Point (1Ā¢) ā¢ Nickel = 5 letters = 5 cents ā¢ Dime = Smallest but mighty (10Ā¢) ā¢ Quarter = Biggest coin = Biggest value of these four (25Ā¢)
Try it
Time to practice identifying and counting coins!
šŖ Coin Identification: 1. Which coin is worth 5 cents? 2. Which coin is worth 10 cents? 3. Which coin is the biggest? 4. Which coin is the smallest? 5. How much is a penny worth?
š° Coin Values: 6. How many pennies equal 1 nickel? 7. How many pennies equal 1 dime? 8. How many nickels equal 1 dime? 9. How many pennies equal 1 quarter?
š Counting Coins:
10. You have 3 pennies. How much money do you have?
11. You have 2 nickels. How much money do you have?
(Hint: 5Ā¢ + 5Ā¢ = ?)
12. You have 1 dime and 1 penny. How much total?šØ Drawing Challenge: 13. Draw a penny, nickel, dime, and quarter in order from least to most value.
š Word Problems: 14. Maria found 1 quarter and 2 pennies. How much money did she find?
15. Tom has 1 dime and 1 nickel. Does he have enough to buy a toy that costs 20Ā¢? How do you know?
šŖ Real Practice: 16. Ask an adult to show you real coins. Can you identify each one and say its value?