How to Teach Your Child Money Math: Counting Coins, Making Change, and Fun Practice Ideas

Money looks very different to your child today than it did for you. Most purchases now happen with a card tap or digital wallet, with no bills or coins changing hands. That can make it harder for your student to picture what money is worth or understand how different amounts add up.

That's why we created this guide to help you make money math more concrete for your learner. You and your child can work through each idea together, from recognizing coin values to figuring out totals and change, then try simple ways to practice money math at home and during everyday errands.

How to Count Coins

To count coins, we can follow these four steps:

1. Learn what each coin is worth.

2. Count one type of coin at a time.

3. Count mixed coins.

4. Add up their values to see what we can buy.

Let’s work through these steps with an example. Imagine we’re getting ready for a trip to the school store. First, we need to figure out how much money we have in our piggy bank. Then, we can decide what we can afford to buy. 

1. Start with what coins are worth

Say we open the piggy bank and find four kinds of coins: pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters. Before we start counting, let’s learn what each one is worth.

Some coin values connect neatly to the ones and tens we already know from place value. A penny works like one “one,” while a dime works like one “ten.” This helps us count because we can group pennies into tens instead of counting every cent one by one.

For example, 10 pennies have the same value as 1 dime. So if we have 2 dimes and 4 pennies, we can think of that as 2 tens and 4 ones:

20¢ + 4¢ = 24¢.

The same place-value idea helps us see how cents build up to a dollar:

Nickels and quarters work a little differently. A nickel is worth 5 cents, and a quarter is worth 25 cents, so they do not line up as neatly with ones and tens. Instead, we usually count them by 5s and 25s.

If we have three nickels, we count 5, 10, 15, so the total is 15¢. With three quarters, we count 25, 50, 75, giving us 75¢. 

To help you with coin counting, our tutors put together this table showing the value of each coin and the counting pattern that goes with it: 

2. Count one type of coin at a time

Next, we sort the coins into groups. We have 2 quarters, 3 dimes, 3 nickels, and 5 pennies.

Because every coin in a group has the same value, we don’t count each coin as just one more. Instead, we count by 25s for quarters, 10s for dimes, 5s for nickels, and 1s for pennies:

• Quarters: 25, 50. So 2 quarters are worth 50¢.

• Dimes: 10, 20, 30. So 3 dimes are worth 30¢.

• Nickels: 5, 10, 15. So 3 nickels are worth 15¢.

• Pennies: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. So 5 pennies are worth 5¢.

3. Count mixed coins

Now we’ll put all the coins together and count them in one go. We start with the coin worth the most and work down: quarters, then dimes, then nickels, then pennies. The larger values come first, so the numbers are easier to follow and we’re less likely to lose our place.

When we switch to a new coin, we keep counting from the number we reached rather than starting over.

Let's count together:

• Quarters: 25, 50

• Dimes: 60, 70, 80

• Nickels: 85, 90, 95

• Pennies: 96, 97, 98, 99, 100

We have 100¢. That's exactly $1!

Since 100¢ and $1 have the same value, we could exchange these coins for a $1 bill. They look different, but they represent the same amount of money.

Now that we know we have $1 to spend, we’re ready for our trip to the school store. Let’s see what we can buy with it. 

4. Use the total to see what we can buy

At the school store, we have $1 to spend. We pick out a sticker for 40¢ and a pencil for 25¢. Before we buy them, we need to find their total cost and check whether our dollar is enough. 

We need to add 40¢ + 25¢. Let’s start with the tens:

40 + 20 = 60.

Then we add the 5 that is left:

60 + 5 = 65.

So the two items cost 65¢ altogether. Since 65¢ is less than $1, we have enough money to buy both.

We can show the same total with coins, too. A quarter, a dime, and a nickel make 40¢. If we add one more quarter, the total becomes 65¢. We still have part of our dollar left, so next we can figure out how much change we should get back.

How to Make Change

We can make change by counting up from the price to the amount we paid, just as many cashiers do. This is often easier than subtracting the price from the amount paid. 

Our sticker and pencil cost 65¢, and we paid with our $1 bill. Let's find our change.

1. Start at the price and count up to the next ten

We begin at 65¢ and add 5¢ to reach 70¢. That 5¢ could be one nickel.

After we reach a multiple of ten, we count by tens.

2. Count up to $1

From 70¢, we need 30¢ more to reach $1. We can count that out with three dimes: 80, 90, $1.

3. Find the total change

Now we put the two amounts together:

5¢ + 30¢ = 35¢.

So our change is 35¢.

4. Check your answer

We can check our answer by adding the change back to the price: 

65¢ + 35¢ = 100¢, or $1. 

That matches what we paid, so our change is correct!

📕 You May Also Like: How to Build Decimal Sense Using Money

5 Fun Ways to Practice Money Math

Our tutors often use hands-on activities and real-world examples to help students make sense of topics like money math. We’ve drawn on that approach to put together five ideas you can try at home and during everyday outings. 

A. Coin sort and value check

Grab a small handful of coins and work through them with your child. Ask them to:

• Sort the coins into groups.

• Name each coin.

• Say how much each coin is worth.

• Arrange the groups from lowest to highest value.

• Count the coins in each group using skip-counting.

This may help your learner get comfortable with coin names and values before they start counting mixed coins.

B. Make the same amount two ways

To help your student become more flexible with money math, choose an amount, such as 50¢, and have them make it in several different ways: 

• 5 dimes

• 10 nickels

• 2 quarters

• 1 quarter, 2 dimes, and 1 nickel

Then try another amount and repeat with different coin combinations. This way, they can see that different combinations of coins can add up to the same total value.

C. Home shop with price tags

You can also try this game at home. Set up 5–10 household items with price tags under $1 to start, then assign three roles:

• Customer: Chooses an item and pays with play coins or a $1 bill.

• Shopkeeper: Says the price, takes the payment, and gives change.

• Checker: Counts the change with everyone to make sure it’s correct.

Swap roles after each purchase. Your learner gets to practice reading prices, counting money, and making change, all in one game.

📕 You May Also Like: How to Teach Kids Money Skills with Math

D. Receipt check

After a shopping trip where you paid with cash, look over the receipt together. Ask your child to:

• Find the total.

• Compare it with the amount you paid.

• Work out the change.

• Check whether the printed change matches their answer.

Receipts are an easy way to bring money math into everyday errands, while giving your student real numbers to investigate.

E. Saving goal tracker

If your learner gets an allowance or earns small amounts for chores, create a simple tracker toward a goal, such as a $5 toy. 

Here’s how it might look like:

Each week, your child adds to the total and figures out how much is left. This extends money math into planning ahead and lets them practice persistence as they save toward something they want.

📕 You May Also Like: 10 Fun Math Games to Play at Home with Your Child

At Mathnasium, we use a diagnostic assessment to pinpoint each child’s learning needs and help them build math mastery step by step from there.

How Mathnasium Helps Students Learn and Master Any Math Skill

Mathnasium is a math-only learning center dedicated to helping K–12 students of all skill levels excel in math.

Math makes more sense when students can connect numbers to real life. Money is a great example because counting coins brings together number sense, skip-counting, place value, and addition in a way children can see and use every day.

We build on those connections through the Mathnasium Method™, our proprietary teaching approach that meets students where they are and helps them develop understanding step by step.

Each student begins with a diagnostic assessment that helps us understand their current skill level, knowledge gaps, goals, and how they think and feel about math. For young learners, we may look at how comfortably they count, work with place value, skip-count, and combine amounts.

Using these insights, we create a personalized learning plan focused on the skills the student needs most, whether that means building number sense, practicing skip-counting, adding coin values, or learning how to make change.

Our specially trained tutors follow the plan closely and provide live, face-to-face instruction in a caring and fun group environment. They use mental, verbal, visual, tactile, and written techniques to help math ideas make sense.

Students also get room to think through problems before tutors step in. Our tutors guide them with simple questions that help them notice patterns, try another idea, and explain how they reached an answer. This helps young learners build problem-solving skills and become more independent with math.

Fun is a big part of the approach, too. We use hands-on and game-based activities, rewards, and consistent encouragement to keep young learners engaged as they count, compare, sort, and solve everyday money problems.

The impact is clear in our results:

• 94% of parents report an improvement in their child's math skills and understanding

• 93% of parents report their child's improved attitude toward math after attending Mathnasium

• 90% of students saw an improvement in their school grades

For families in and near Massapequa Park, NY, Mathnasium of Massapequa Park brings that same approach close to home, with specially trained tutors who help students build number sense, make sense of money, and develop the early math skills they will use as they grow.

If your child needs support with counting coins, making change, or any other math topic, a free diagnostic assessment is a great place to start. Using what we learn, we create a personalized learning plan that helps your child strengthen the skills they need next.

📅 Schedule a Free Assessment at Mathnasium of Massapequa Park

Not near Massapequa Park?

📍 Find a Mathnasium Learning Center Near You