I don't know about you, but I find the concept of "money" one of the most difficult to teach. It's something about the skip counting, especially switching from counting by 10s to 5s to 1s, and so on. It can get pretty tricky for my little ones to catch on to and challenging for me to try and explain in different ways. I find myself constantly searching for activities that will help make the concept of money more manageable as well as fun! Luckily, my best friend Pinterest saved the day as usual, and I found loads of awesome activities that have been the perfect addition to my money unit!
First, I found this fun game of "Money War" created by Sarah J from Sarah J Creations. My kids LOVE any activity that allows them play with a buddy, so this was just perfect. I also loved that it was an already familiar game, so not much explaining was necessary. I popped this in my weekly math centers, and voila! The kids went at it like naturals.
Another activity I love, plus it's FREE and that's always a major bonus, is this activity created by Marcy at Saddle Up for 2nd Grade. Her "Money Cups" activity is a class favorite. I love that it provides my kiddos with "real world" practice handling and counting coins. This is a another great option for center activities, too!
After finding all of these treasures, I found a little inspiration of my own! So I put together a little activity that my cuties could use in BOTH literacy and math stations, because who doesn't love a little cross curricular action? I'd used this activity before to practice sight words and addition with my K babies, so I knew it would be a hit with my 2nd grade friends, too! This time, I traded out single digit numbers for coins. I had my students write their spelling words in the blanks and use the alphabet key to calculate the "cost" of each word. It was an instant hit!
You can grab this freebie for your class by clicking the picture below!
I hope your kiddos enjoy it as much as mine have, and it helps make the task of teaching money a little easier for you!
