Counting and exchanging money

Counting a handful of coins

To find how much money you have, add up the value of each coin. The easiest way:

1. Sort the coins by type.
2. Start with the biggest value.
3. Count on as you add each smaller coin.

Example: counting coins

You have 1 loonie, 2 quarters, 1 dime and 3 nickels.

Total: $1.75.

Skip counting helps

• Count quarters by 25s: 25, 50, 75, 100.
• Count dimes by 10s: 10, 20, 30.
• Count nickels by 5s: 5, 10, 15.

Writing money amounts

There are two ways to write money:

• In cents: 75¢
• In dollars: $0.75

When you have more than 100 cents, use dollars: 175¢ = $1.75. The digits after the decimal point are the cents.

Exchanging money

To exchange means to trade coins or bills for others of the same total value. The amounts are equivalent.

Many amounts can be made in more than one way. 50¢ could be 2 quarters, 5 dimes, 10 nickels, or 1 quarter + 2 dimes + 1 nickel.

Worked examples

Example 1: How much are 3 quarters and 2 dimes?

75¢ + 20¢ = 95¢.

Example 2: Show 40¢ in two different ways.

1 quarter + 1 dime + 1 nickel, or 4 dimes.

Example 3: How many nickels equal 1 quarter?

25 ÷ 5 = 5 nickels.

Common mistakes

• Counting the number of coins instead of their value. Five coins could be 25¢ or $10!
• Starting with the smallest coins, which makes counting on harder.
• Writing $175 when you mean $1.75.

Try it yourself

1. Count: 2 toonies, 1 loonie, 1 quarter.
2. How many dimes equal $2?
3. Make 30¢ using exactly 3 coins.
4. Write 250¢ in dollars.

Answers: 1) $5.25 2) 20 3) 3 dimes 4) $2.50

Quick recap

• Sort coins, start with the biggest and count on.
• 100 cents = 1 dollar; write amounts as ¢ or $.
• You can exchange coins for any equivalent amount.