Although we have casino games as real money games, there are a few coin-based games that can be used to teach your kids about money and math.
Coin games are games that use coins or currency. You can equally use these coin-based games to teach your kids how to add, subtract, multiply or divide in terms of money. This is a fantastic way to teach your kids the true value of money.
Playing real money games encourages to learn how to handle money comfortably. It can equally help increase their mathematical skills alongside other cognitive skills including creativity, self-regulation, problem-solving, and language.
There are hundreds of real money games you can try out with your kids and a huge number of apps to invest in as their skills improve. However, we are concerned about inexpensive coin-based games that are excellent for younger kids.
How to use coin-based games in teaching
The first rule is to ensure that your kids understand that it is a pretend game, especially if you decide to use real coins. If you are concerned about choking or sanitation, you can also make your own currency out of paper or cardboard.
Secondly, make sure they know they can’t keep the rewards either, especially when the rewards are parts of the game. The shopping center game below is a fine example of this event.
Now let’s look at a few coin-based real money games you can use to teach your kids about math and money.
- Money Toss
This game includes penny pitching, where your kids are required to name the coin as they make it in the ring or toss into mixed coins. Coins that fall inside the bowl or ring are part of the winner’s stash while the coins that land outside the bowl will go to the player.
In the end, your kids will count their winnings to know who has the most. You can also talk to them about the size, colors, similarities, and differences between the coins.
- Dollars and Dice
Your kids will be required to collect the correct number of coins to create a dollar. This fun game can help your kids learn more about counting, adding and trading money. Your kids can take turns based on the role of the die and adding coins. In the end, the role of the die should correlate to different coin values including:
- 1—penny
- 2—nickel
- 3—dime
- 4—quarter
- 5—any coin (wild card)
- 6—lose a turn
The player that reaches exactly one dollar is the winner. Therefore, players with earnings over or under a dollar will lose the turn. When your kids master the game, you can increase the winning amount.
- Hide and Seek
Depending on your kids’ age and counting levels, you can hide coins around the house. Then your kids will set out to find as many coins as possible and count them. The player with the highest total will win the game.
For younger kids, you can use pennies and the other coins for older kids. However, ensure you keep track of the coins and find them all at the end of the day to avoid all forms of choking accidents.
- Money Matching
In this case, you can give each child a bank of coins and formulate a set of cards with different values. You should use pennies for younger kids learning to count and card values up to 10 cents.
For older kids, you can increase as far as a dollar. Your kids will take turns drawing cards and using the coins to create the value on their card. Usually, there are no winners in this game but you can build a reward system for players that can give the right answer.
- Shopping Center
In this game, you can gather the number of toys and place tags on them. Make sure the prices are countable in pennies, especially when you have younger kids learning to count.
Next, your kids will be required to identify the price and count the number of coins they will require to buy that toy.
Conclusion
Coin-based games are excellent for teaching your kids about money and math. However, as they develop those skills, you may have to seek other ways to improve their money management skills.
Some such real money games include board games (e.g. Monopoly, The Game of Life), online Games (e.g. Piggy Bank), simulation games and role-playing games. Money is an important part of life and financial guidance is a necessity. Teaching your kids early on about money management is a fine way to prepare them for the future.
