Teachers are often expected to come up with creative and innovative ways to teach and explain various math concepts to their students. Math concepts involving the base 10 system, computation, and money can be particularly important, because students will use these skills for the rest of their lives. The following tip from Family Math Night: Math Standards in Action, by Jennifer Taylor Cox, provides teachers (and parents!) with an activity they can play with their students to reinforce these essential skills.
"Money is the Key" allows students to gain further knowledge and experience in understanding the base 10 system and computation. Because money typically proves highly motivating, students will be actively engaged in generating sums represented in various ways.
Materials
Play money (coins and bills)
Dice
Money Key
Pretend checks
Helpful Hints:
Provide enough pretend money (particularly quarters, half-dollars, and one-dollar bills).
Use different colored dice for the challenge
Directions:
- Each player rolls the die and collects money.
- The Money Key indicates how much money the players receive for each roll.
- Take turns rolling the die and collecting money. Compare the total amount each player has after each roll.
- After ten rolls, exchange coins and bills as necessary. For example, exchange eight quarters for two one-dollar bills.
- The player with the greatest amount receives a pretend check for that amount. (For older students, you can have them practice writing out the check as well!)
Questions teachers (or parents) can ask:
Who has more/less money?
What is the difference in the amounts?
How many times do you think you would need to roll the number die to reach fifty dollars?
Challenge:
Roll two dice. One die tells the amount, and the other die tells how many times that amount you receive for the turn. Make a different Money Key and play again!
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