So, how are you and your child doing with the pennies? If you missed the first two posts in the series, here they are: Part 1 and Part 2. Today we will transition to nickels.
Preschool and primary grade children need to have many hands-on experiences with addition and subtraction before they will truly understand the concept of coins and money, so I will be writing some posts about strategies and resources that can be used to strengthen their understanding of these operations before we move on to dimes next week.
The picture book I will recommend today can be used to introduce nickels and dimes. Today, we will only use the first half of the book to transition from pennies to nickels. It may be difficult to stop reading a picture book in the middle, but please make every effort to do so (unless your child already has a firm grasp on nickels). Dimes can be very confusing to children since they are the smaller than pennies and nickels.
Pennies come to life in the gem of a picture book, Penny, by Jeffrey Patnaude! There is a fun, rhyming flow to this children's book that goes along perfectly with its vibrant illustrations. You'll find that it's so easy to read this book with enthusiasm, and if you use some props and do a little acting (no Academy Award winning performances required here), you and your child will have a blast!
Even though you'll only be reading the first half of this book today, you should read the entire book to yourself before you share it with your child. That way, you'll be prepared to make it a fun, interactive read aloud for her. Don't even show the book to your child yet!
For part 1 of this lesson, you'll need 5 pennies, a nickel, and a printable five-pointed star.
You'll also need to secretly hide the coins in the following places:
- Penny #1 should be "stuck" under something.
- Penny #2 should be in your pocket.
- Penny #3 will later appear to come from behind your child's ear (keep it in the palm of your hand for now).
- Penny #4 should be placed behind a door somewhere nearby.
- Penny #5 can be placed in another room where your child will be able to find it (or even in a jar or your purse or wallet).
- The nickel should be placed in your other pocket, or somewhere that's easily accessible.
Okay, so before you even show your child the book, take your child to where penny #1 is "stuck," and ask him to help you pick it up, and ask what kind of coin it is. Then say, "Oh my gosh, I have a book about this penny! Would you like to see it?" Open it up and start reading, letting it roll when you get to page 2.
Let your child pick it up. If she has a pocket, she can put it in there, just as the book character does. You can keep reading along with the story and take penny #2 out of your pocket and let her jingle the two coins. You can pause and read, letting your child jingle the pennies.
With penny #3 in your hand, pretend that you found it behind your child's ear (when you get to the part with the third penny that comes "out of the sky"). Then let him jingle the three pennies.
Keep reading along, and ask your child if she thinks there's one behind a door? Let her look for penny #4.
Let him jingle the 4 pennies. When the book character says, "I'll find one more penny, and make them a nickel," ask your child what a nickel is. Ask why one more would make a nickel. Give your child a chance to think about it and explain.
When the book says to find another, let her look for penny #5.
Take out the 5 pointed star and let your child place one penny at each point (counting out the cents), just as is done in the book.
Ask how many cents 5 pennies are. Then, explain that 5 pennies have the same value as one nickel. It would help if you removed the five coins and put a nickel in the center of the star instead.
Ask which your child would rather have, 5 pennies or one nickel. Read the next page, where it says, "No more pennies for me. 1 nickel is easier to carry you see." Stop reading at this point and talk about the book.
You could also take out two small toys, label them each with a 5 cent price tag, and each of you can buy one with the 5 pennies and the nickel.
Feel free to read and act out the story as many times as you like! You can also make a 5 cents store and let your child exchange pennies and nickels (using the star to count the pennies). You can have items up to 5 cents, and review pennies and nickels.
I would not move on the 6 cents or 10 cents until your child has worked with the pennies and nickels for a while. If your child is ready, you can add another star to make 10 cents with pennies and nickels, but I wouldn't introduce dimes just yet. I'll show you part two of this picture book lesson within a week or two.
I hope you love this book as much as I do! Children love to act things out, and using real coins and a 5 pointed star will help them to remember what they learn.
For information about the US nickel, as well as a printable coin to color, check out the US Mint web site.
You may find part 4 of this series here.
Have a great week!