Grade 1 · Number
Financial Literacy — Coin Values and Exchanges
Grade 1 financial literacy moves beyond identifying coins to understanding their values and using them in transactions. The connections to number sense are powerful: counting nickels is skip-counting by 5s; counting dimes is skip-counting by 10s. Financial literacy here is number sense in a real-world context. Role-playing transactions and exploring Indigenous trade systems connect mathematics to human exchange across time and culture.
LESSON VIDEO
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Lesson video
A short walkthrough to play in class or assign for flipped/at-home viewing.
WHAT STUDENTS WILL LEARN
✓Identify the values of Canadian coins: nickel (5 cents), dime (10 cents), quarter (25 cents), loonie (1 dollar), toonie (2 dollars)
✓Count multiples of the same denomination using skip-counting: nickels by 5s, dimes by 10s
✓Role-play financial transactions using coins and whole dollar or cent amounts
✓Understand money as a medium of exchange
✓Connect coin counting to skip-counting; connect trade and barter to Indigenous exchange systems