Mathematics · 1st Class

Active learning ideas

Combining Coins to Make a Total

Turn your pupils into money whizzes with this practical topic on combining coins.

• NCCA Curriculum Specifications
• PSMC: Measures - Money

• 15–25 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 3 activities

Activity 01

• Practical Life Work
• 25 min · Pairs

Classroom Shop

Set up a small 'shop' in the corner of the classroom with items (e.g., rubbers, pencils, small toys) priced up to 20c. Pupils take turns being the shopkeeper and the customer, using replica coins to buy items. This provides a practical and engaging context for combining coins.

Identify two different ways to make 12c.

Facilitation Tip

Have a chart visible showing the coins and their values to support pupils who are still unsure.

What to look for

Observe pupils during the 'Classroom Shop' activity. Use a checklist to note which pupils can correctly combine coins to pay for an item and which need support.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Decision-Making
• Self-Awareness

Activity 02

• Practical Life Work
• 15 min · Pairs

Coin Purses

Give each pair of pupils a small bag or 'purse' containing a specific set of coins. Call out a total, for example 15c, and challenge them to make that amount using only the coins in their purse. They can then draw their solution on a mini-whiteboard.

Explain how you can make 20c using only two coins.

Facilitation Tip

Vary the coins in each purse to create different levels of challenge for different groups.

What to look for

Provide a worksheet with pictures of items and their prices (e.g., an apple for 12c). Pupils must draw the coins needed to buy each item.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Decision-Making
• Self-Awareness

Activity 03

• Practical Life Work
• 20 min · Small Groups

How Many Ways?

Present a target amount on the board, such as 12c. In small groups, pupils use replica coins to find and record all the different combinations of coins that make this total. They can draw the coins or write the number sentences (e.g., 10c + 2c = 12c).

Compare making 15c with 5c coins versus using a 10c and a 5c coin.

Facilitation Tip

Encourage a systematic approach, such as starting with the largest value coin first.

What to look for

Ask pupils to give a 'thumbs up, thumbs in the middle, or thumbs down' to show how confident they feel about making 15c in different ways.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Decision-Making
• Self-Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Always start with hands-on practice using replica coins. Begin with smaller, more manageable totals like 6c or 8c before tackling larger amounts. Encourage pupils to verbalise their thinking, for example, 'I need 11c, so I will start with a 10c coin and add a 1c coin'. Use a number line or hundred square as a visual aid to support the addition process.

After these activities, your pupils will be able to confidently choose the right coins to make totals up to 20c and explain how they did it.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• A bigger coin is worth more money.

  The value of a coin is written on it as a number, not determined by its size. Show pupils a 2c coin and a 5c coin side-by-side and explicitly point out that the 5c coin is smaller but is worth more.

• Counting the number of coins instead of their value.

  When a pupil makes 8c with a 5c, 2c, and 1c coin and says they have '3', correct them by modelling 'touch counting'. Touch each coin and say its value aloud ('five, and two more is seven, and one more is eight'), then state the total is 'eight cent'.

• Forgetting the 'c' symbol or the word 'cent'.

  Consistently model the correct language and notation yourself when talking about and writing amounts of money. Remind pupils that the 'c' tells us we are talking about money, not just a number.

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Methods used in this brief

• Practical Life Work