Counting US coins: penny, nickel, dime, quarter
The dime is the smallest coin and worth more than the penny or the nickel. Value is not size, and that is the first thing to teach.
The idea
Four coins, four values: penny 1¢, nickel 5¢, dime 10¢, quarter 25¢. A coin's worth has nothing to do with its size; the dime is the smallest and thinnest of the four. To count a handful, start from the biggest value and count on: "25, 35, 45, 50, 51". To pay an amount, take the biggest coin that still fits, again and again, and pennies fill the last bit.
Where kids get stuck
- Counting coins as "one, two, three" instead of by value. Five coins can be 5¢ or 85¢.
- The dime. Smaller than a penny, worth ten of them. Children need to handle real ones to believe it.
- Counting by 5s and 10s has to be solid first; coin counting is skip-counting with a change of step.
Try it at home
Real coins, not pictures. Sort them, then line them up by value and by size and notice the two orders differ. Play shop: price a few things at 7¢, 23¢, 41¢ and have your child pay exactly, saying the running total out loud. Then swap roles and let them catch you paying wrong.