“Look at this! They have really good deals at Burger King! You can get a whole meal for just $3,” my five year old informed her daddy. Since Quinn was very young, we started teaching her the importance and value of money. She has her own piggy bank as well as an actual bank account and is aware of the importance of saving. While her kindergarten class will not be going over coins, dollars and their values, at the beginning of 2018, I thought it would be a wonderful idea to not only introduce her to this concept but to reinforce what she learns with activities related to math.

One of the activities is what we call “Mommy’s Coin Counting Store.” I purchased little price labels at the Dollar Tree and even had Quinn be a part of how much she thinks different items might cost. I was quite impressed with how accurate she was with many of the items. Then, we used the Learning Resources cash register I purchased her a few years ago to set up the shop. Initially, I was the shopkeeper, so I gave her a little wallet along with pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters, one dollar bills, five dollar bills, ten dollar bills and twenty dollar bills. It was tricky for her to count out the coins when the amount was not exact, but after a few times and having her just focus on specific coins instead of everything in her wallet, she did surprisingly well.

Whenever we go to the store and I’m paying cash for an item for her, I will have her pay and walk her through how much the item cost so that she can figure out how much to pay and how much she will get back in return. Just yesterday, she wanted to play with the cash register and count out bills herself. She even asked, “Mommy, are there $100 dollar bills?” When I replied yes, “She said, I wish I had one because I could trade in five twenty dollar bills for one 100 dollar bill.

There are so many adults who struggle with finances or even with counting money. I’m glad Quinn has a head start and hope this is setting the foundation for her managing her money properly, not letting anyone cheat her out of her money and understanding the importance of saving.

All the best,

Tanya