Graph Money

What You Need:

• Coins
• Paper
• Pencil
• Crayons

What You Do:

1. Start off with a brief scavenger hunt. You and your child need to find as many coins as possible. Search your wallet, your back pocket and beneath couch cushions for at least a handful of change.
2. Help your child draw the two axes for a graph. Explain that they are going to make a graph that will show how many of each type of coin they have.
3. For the first graph, have them sort the coins by value. Help them label the axes. The bottom axis should be labeled with coin type: penny, nickel, dime and quarter. The side axis should be numbered high enough to include the total values for each type of coin.
4. Help your child graph each of these totals. For example, if they have two dimes, then the dime bar needs to go all the way up to twenty. Coloring each bar can make it easier to read.
5. What else can they show in a graph? Help your learner draw a graph by coin color – copper vs silver. Brainstorm with your child and create a third graph that shows the differences of the coins in a new way.
6. Now have your child compare and contrast the graphs they have made.  What do the graphs tell them? Which is the most useful?
7. Have them share the information with someone else in the family so that they can practice discussing what they have learned.