Money Matters: Teaching the Value of Money

Parents often say, “Money doesn’t grow on trees.” This saying is much more than an excuse not to buy the latest toys. Money’s value comes from labor. Adults have to earn it to live. We get our paychecks from the goods and services that we offer our employers, and in the same way, we give money for the goods and services that we receive from others.

Therefore, a child must learn that money is received when they have earned it. I recommended this idea to someone who was having trouble getting their teenager to do their chores, and his response was, “I don’t want to bribe her.” But if our employers did not bribe us, we would not work for them. We would find a better employer.

In earning money, children learn to balance wants with income. They can decide for themselves if the toy they want is really worth the effort of saving up to buy or if they want something else instead. No longer is it up to us to provide everything, and they learn how to make choices for themselves.

For us, I have a morning and evening routine. In the morning, they get themselves dressed and ready for the day, make their beds, and put away their pajamas. In the evening, they put on their pajamas, put away their dirty clothes, and clean up their toys. For each morning and for each evening routine they complete, they get a quarter, which could be fifty cents a day. Each week, their routines are posted on their doors.

Here are some ideas on teaching children the value of money:

1. Set up a lemonade or ice cream stand. Have them buy what they need out of their own allowance or have them pay you back from their earnings.
2. Set up an art gallery for them to sell their best artwork or arts and crafts, or have an art show and charge a small admission fee.
3. Help them offer their services to neighbors and friends for a small fee. Older children can start babysitting or lawn mowing businesses. Younger children can pick up sticks or plant flowers.
4. Plant a garden together and sell or trade your produce to your neighbors.
5. Write an illustrated children’s book together. Have it bound at a local shop, and sell it to family and friends.
6. Have a bake sale. The children can help plan, bake, and collect the money.
7. Have a garage sale, and let them select some of their old toys to sell.
8. Have a car wash.

To follow up with these activities, the book Sluggers Carwash by Stuart J. Murphy is a great story about money for young gradeschoolers.

Money Matters: Teaching Wise Money Habits

There are only three things a person can do with money: save it, give it away, and use it. As adults, we have to balance those things to have healthy finances. We must save to prepare for hard times and for big purchases we may want, and we must use money to eat and live. Giving helps keep our lives in perspective, reminding us of the troubles that others face.

Children need to know this too. They can learn by example as they watch us balance our budgets, plan our resources and spending, and give to charities. As you deal with your finances, keep your children involved. Talk to them about what you do, explaining why and answering their questions. Then help your children of all ages to separate money for savings and for charity before they spend their money.

Since I pay my young children in quarters, I have them separate them into groups of ten. Out of each group of ten, they set one aside for savings and one for giving, and with the rest they can trade four quarters for a dollar.

Here are some ideas on keeping your children involved in your finances:

1. Plan a dinner menu and build your grocery list from it. Have your child help you do this.
2. Take you child grocery shopping and have them help you compare prices.
3. Plan your monthly expenditures, including savings, giving, grocery budget, and bills. As you sketch it all out, show your child what you are doing.
4. Plant a garden or visit a farmer’s market with your child. Talk about the value of fresh, quality produce and cost effective use of our money.
5. Plan a major purchase for the family (like new furniture or a new car) with your child and set money aside for it each week.
6. Help a child plan for something they want. Create a goal chart together, and designate a bank where they can save their money.
7. Answer requests for something new with the statement, “There are lots of wonderful things in the store, but if we brought it all home, it would just clutter up our lives.”

Math Skills: Patterns

Of all the early math concepts, learning about patterns was my favorite. "Oh look, it's a pattern," became a frequent phrase in our family. I was about to say, "in our house," but the truth is patterns are everywhere. In the grocery story, in the hardware store, in the library, at the museum, you'll find patterns in books, on the floor, on the walls. I guess people like patterns.

Books About Patterns

Pattern Bugs by Trudy Harris

This story has beautiful artwork and poetry. The bugs, the frames around the pages, and even the words of the poetry follow patterns.

Pattern Fish by Trudy Harris

Like her book on bugs, there are visual and word patterns throughout the book.

Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? by Bill Martin Jr. and Eric Carle

This is another book with rhythmic word patterns along with a fun theme.

Activities with Patterns

Activity #1

Point out patterns everywhere you go. Walking up some brick steps to get to a museum, I noticed the bricks were laid in a special pattern, and once we got to the landing, the pattern changed. I pointed this out to M & R, and they were hooked, finding patterns everywhere. "Look, mom, it's a pattern," they would say excitedly. You can find patterns on almost anything:

* Wallpaper

* Clothing

* Food Labels

* Book Covers

* Quilts

* Floor Tiles

Activity #2

Take a nature walk. Observe patterns in nature (i.e. leaves, spider webs, flowers, animal tracks). You can even build a nature journal documenting the patterns that you see.

Activity #3

Watch for word patterns in books, poems, and songs. For example, the Big Bad Wolf says, "I will huff and I will puff and I will blow your house down," or there is the response from the pigs, "Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin."

Activity #4

Decorate for holidays and birthdays with paper chains or streamers. Alternating between red and green makes a simple Christmas pattern, or you could use pink, red, and white for a more complex Valentine's Day decoration. Or hang streamers of various colors in a window as another pattern decoration for a birthday party…or just because it is a beautiful day.

Activity #5

Rhythm pattern (clap, stomp, clap, stomp) and action pattern (stand, sit, jump, stand, sit, jump) games can be as simple or as complex as you would like them to be. Take turns with the kids on who builds the pattern.

Activity #6

Using colorful beads, string them on yarn to make necklaces. By now, the kids know what a pattern is, so let the kids build their own designs.

Activity #7

Paint a series of shapes in various colors across a piece of cardboard. Tell a story about your picture using pattern words. Makani painted a series of patterns, calling them animal tracks, and then she painted a storm that wreaked havoc with the whole pattern.

Activity #8

Build colorful pattern towers using interconnecting blocks of various colors.

Activity #9

Weave potholders on a loom. Both the colors and the weaving motion reinforce the pattern concept.

Activity #10
Play with your food! Line up your M&M's in colorful patterns.

Math Skills: Ordering

We have just started a new math skill: ordering. I always like using stories to teach math concepts. There is something that triggers understanding when you can see it in a book. Maybe they word it better than I can. Maybe it is the pictures. Or maybe it's because stories always make an impact on children.

So I planned a few art projects, some games, and ordered some really good books, including The Best Bug Parade and The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

Full list of books that I used:

The Best Bug Parade by Stuart J. Murphy

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

Who Sank the Boat? by Pamela Allen

How Big Is a Foot? by Rolf Myller

One Was Johnny by Maurice Sendak

Mighty Maddie by Stuart J. Murphy

Full list of games:

Game #1:

You will need toys of various sizes. We used stuffed animals. Children put them in order from tallest to shortest, and then shortest to tallest. Key words: short, shorter, shortest, tall, taller, tallest.

Game #2:

You will need building blocks (lego's, mega blocks, or wooden stacking blocks will do). Build a series of towers where each tower is taller or shorter than the next one. R likes to build stairs, so this would work too. Key words: short, shorter, shortest, tall, taller, tallest.

Game #3:

You will need stairs to climb. With each step up, talk about how much higher you are, and at the top, you are the highest. With each step down, talk about how much lower you are, and at the bottom, you are the lowest. Key words: high, higher, highest, low, lower, lowest.

Game #4:

You will need various items from your pantry. I used a jar of peanut butter, a can of peanuts, a container of hot chocolate mix, an empty mug, and a coffee tin. I picked items that were both heavy and light and where the size had no bearing on the weight. I had the girls order them by weight (estimating the weight by picking it up). Key words: heavy, heavier, heaviest, light, lighter, lightest.

Game #5:

You will need 6 Mason jars (or other glass jars that are all the same size), water, and a metal spoon. Set up tone bottles with various amounts of water and then listen to the pitch of each jar by tapping it with a metal spoon. Make note that the lower the pitch the higher the water level. Key words: high, higher, highest, low, lower, lowest.

Game #6:

Play with stacking cups, stacking rings, and Russian nesting dolls.

Full list of art projects:

Art Project #1:

You will need glue, string, and construction paper. I cut the string by inches (i.e. 1 inch, 2 inches, 3 inches, etc.) until I had 8 strings for each girl. The girls put them in order by length and then used a ruler to measure them. I had them write the number of inches by each string and then glue the string onto the paper. Key words: short, shorter, shortest, long, longer, longest.

Art Project #2:

You will need markers, construction paper, and varying sizes of round lids. Centering a lid on the middle of the page, trace it with a marker. Continue to do this for all lids so that the smallest circle is in the center of the largest circle. The child should be able to see the growing sizes of circles. Key words: small, smaller, smallest, big, bigger, biggest, large, larger, largest.

Art Project #3:

You will need varying sizes of shapes drawn on a paper, scissors, glue, and construction paper. Cut out the shapes and glue them in order by size on the construction paper. Key words: small, smaller, smallest, big, bigger, biggest, large, larger, largest.

Art Project #4:

You will need construction paper, scissors, glue, and cutouts of varying shapes. I recommend that the cutouts have a different number available for each shape (i.e. 1 circle, 2 squares, 3 hearts, etc.) Draw a butterfly on a piece of construction paper. Have the children cut out the butterfly and then glue shapes on their wings. When finished, compare the number of shapes on each butterfly. Key words: more, most, less, least.

Art Project #5:

You will need multiple toys of multiple types (i.e. 5 balls, 3 cars, 6 dolls, and 7 stuffed animals). Make a graph where you have a row for each type of toy and fill in a box for each number of that toy. Compare the lines, determining which row has the most and which row has the least. Key words: more, most, less, least.

M&M's for Math Skills Review

M&M's are useful for learning 1-1 correspondence as well as practicing other math-related skills. The girls had some leftover M&M's from Christmas, red and green colors, so I took the opportunity to review some of our previous math lessons. First, we classified the candy by color, and I asked, "Which has more, the red or the green?" So we lined up the colors, side by side. Whichever color had more, they could eat the extra candies.

Then M counted by two's, something that R does not do yet. Then we made patterns. R's was a simple red-green pattern, while M's was three greens followed by two reds. Then we would eat some.

Once we were down to just a few M&M's left, we would subtract. It is easier to build the understanding of adding and subtracting when you work with smaller numbers. Visually, the child can see the subtraction process when you eat 2 M&M's when there were 5 left.

Math Activities: One-to-One Correspondence

The concept of one-to-one correspondence requires two skills: (1) matching pairs and (2) comparing sets. Matching places two like items together as a pair while comparing determines which set has more or less. In these projects, the key is to focus on the language, emphasizing mathematical terms.

Books to Read
The following books teach one-to-one correspondence using stories. I love the impact a story has on a child’s understanding, and these books do a great job of packaging the mathematical ideas in a way that young children can comprehend.

Two of Everything: A Chinese Folk Tale by Lily Toy Hong
Knots on a Counting Rope by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault
Seaweed Soup by Stuart J. Murphy
A Pair of Socks by Stuart J. Murphy
Missing Mittens by Stuart J. Murphy
Monster Musical Chairs by Stuart J. Murphy
Just Enough Carrots by Stuart J. Murphy
Some Things Go Together by Charlotte Zolotow


Projects to Learn Matching
Project #1 – Take opportunity to point out situations where there is a matching set. Word emphasis: match, even, pair, each.

“There are three cups and three straws. It is even.”
“Three children and three cookies. It is a match!”
“A pair of socks for your feet. One foot for each sock, and one sock for each foot.”

Project #2 – Provide the following items and allow the children to sort into pairs. Word emphasis: pair, match.

1 ice cube tray
2 screws
2 washers
2 electrical circuit binders
2 matching butterfly clips
2 matching hair pins
2 pennies
2 matching buttons

Project #3 – Have a tea party with stuffed bears. Set one place setting for each bear. You could say, “One seat for each bear, and one bear for each seat.” Word emphasis: each.

Project #4 – Serve a lunch with matching shapes to make their own snacks. I used cookie cutters to cut the bread, cheese, and lunch meat into matching shapes. I provided at least two different shapes so that they would have to find the match in order to build their sandwiches. Word emphasis: match.

Project #5 – Play the memory game. Word emphasis: pair, match.

Project #6 – Get the kids involved in the laundry. The kids can sort socks and match outfits. Word emphasis: pair, match.

Project #7 – Sort through shoes or mittens to find their matches. We have a pile of shoes in storage for the kids to grow into and a box of mittens put away for the summer. Jumble them up, and have the kids sort them. Word emphasis: pair, match.

Project #8 – Have the children set the dinner table. Give the following instructions, “Set one plate, one fork, and one cup for each person.” Word emphasis: each.


Projects to Learn Comparing
Project #1 – Take opportunity to point out situations where there is not enough or there is too much to go around. Word emphasis: more, less, fewer, even.

“Oops, I grabbed one straw too many. There are three cups and four straws. There are more straws than cups.”
“We have six chairs at our table, but only four people in the family sitting at the table. That leaves two empty chairs because there are more chairs than people.”
“Today we have company, so we have eight people and only six chairs. We have fewer chairs than people, so we will need two more chairs.”
“Three children and four cookies. There are more cookies. If I eat one, it will be even.”

Project #2 – Invite the children to collect toys to put inside two hula hoops. Then count to see which hula hoop has more toys and which has fewer. Ask, “Which set of toys has more? Which set has fewer?” Word emphasis: set, more, fewer, even.

Project #3 – Pour two cups of water and compare the volume. Which cup has more? Which has less? Word emphasis: more, less, even.

Project #4 – Make sugar cookies and put chocolate chips on the frosting. Compare two cookies to see which has more chocolate chips. For an added lesson, determine how many chocolate chips need to be added to make them even. Word emphasis: more, fewer, even.

Nothing Teaches Math Like Cookies

About six months ago, the only number that R could recognize was the number 3 because that was how old she was. We found this out when we bought some preschool math workbooks, and R really struggled with the simplest exercises. So I began my campaign for toys and activities that would familiarize her with the numbers. This was before I found the Count on Math book that I use now.

One game was something like hopscotch. I took the cushions off our kitchen chairs and used masking tape to make the numbers 1 to 5. Then the girls jumped from one cushion to the next, saying the numbers as they go. It was a great way to combine exercise and math.

Then I found some cookie cutters shaped like numbers, and we made sugar cookies and gingerbread cookies in the shape of numbers. I tried to say the numbers as many times as possible while we cut out the cookies, and I had her arrange the cookie cutters in order before she started cutting them. Then she was exposed to the shapes of the numbers when we decorated the cookies and again when she ate them.

Lauri Toys has several puzzles that help teach numbers. The Number Play puzzle and the Number Puzzle Board and Pegs help the child to associate the number shape with the same number of items, but I think I like the Number Express the most. The girls love trains.

Math Skills for All Ages

The first chapter in Count on Math: Activities for Small Hands and Lively Minds contains many activities for exploration. I went into this first chapter thinking I had failed my children in giving them the most opportunities to develop their minds, so I started filling our time with these activities as if we were on a race against time.

I planned all these things and got very frustrated when things did not go as I wanted. "My kids need to explore!" I thought. Or what? Something bad will happen? For one of the activities, I collected jar lids, but nobody was interested in the lids except K (1 1/2 yrs old). I gathered rocks and spread them out on the table, but M & R said to me, "We want to play with beans." Beans was another activity recommended in the book, but we had done that one already.

Then one afternoon, I gave K a paper cup to carry around the backyard with her. She filled it with 2 rocks, a stick, and some flowers, and then brought it back to me to show me what she had found. She was exploring, on her own, without any intervention from me. As long as I did not plop her in front of the TV, she would be exploring, and thinking back to the games M & R used to play, they were always exploring too. In the spring when I planted my flowers, M & R spent hours filling buckets with dirt and transferring the dirt from one bucket to another.

So if exploration happens, what do we need the book Count on Math: Activities for Small Hands and Lively Minds for? Many of the activities are so simple that they do not need any extra planning, and we normally have the tools and supplies needed already on hand. So I built a loose framework by putting notes in a text document in a table format. If we needed something to do, I would scan my notes, grab an activity that we could do easily, and mark it off my list.

What I found was that with this easy framework, I could get all three girls involved in learning the same skills using many of the same activities.

Exploration
While M & R wanted to explore beans, K played in the dirt, and they all loved to play with the water toys and explore water.

Spatial Awareness
M & R had their obstacle course and colored pictures that were taped to the bottom of the coffee table while K played hide and go seek in the closets. Then they all had fun together with building forts and playing pirate with the coffee table turned upside down as their boat.

Classification
M & R had already talked much about eye color and classifying the different members of our family by eye color. M has hazel eyes like Mommy and Grammy while R has brown eyes like Daddy and Memaw, and K's eyes are blue like Papa's. So it was very easy to expand this classifying, especially as we were learning to classify animals for our science lessons.

Patterns
We are currently studying patterns. M likes making up her own patterns. She uses blocks, people, and words. "Is that a pattern?" she will ask. And I take every opportunity to point out patterns to R, who at 3 1/2 is still just grasping the idea. And I started an action game with K, "Clap, Clap, Roll [your hands], Put your fingers up high, Reach down and touch your toes."

So the book Count on Math: Activities for Small Hands and Lively Minds has a lot of fun activities that can be applied to ages 1 to 5 and helps you develop a lot of fresh ideas in keep children busy and active.

Math Skill: Spatial Relationships

The girls had to go
around the chair,
over the couch,
under the coffee table.

Then they crawled
through the kitchen,
over the gate,
under another gate.

Then they jumped
down the hall,
into a basket,
out of a basket.

Finally they came to the playroom where they found cookies on a plate.

Sounds like a lot of fun, but what does this have to do with school?

When we started home schooling, I thought I would teach M & R the same level at the same time. One girl had just turned 5; the other was 3 1/2. Kindergarten for both would work out just fine. M & R both knew the alphabet, could both count to ten, and both recognized their shapes and colors. R likes to be just like her big sister, and sometimes we forget that she really is almost 2 years younger.

Our first attempt at math was to get kindergarten workbooks, and M flew through the book. However, R could not recognize her numbers, let alone draw them. Plus, she struggled with following directions because she did not understand what was expected of her. I realized then that R was her own person with her own educational needs. I could not lump her into M's lessons. So I went looking for a "non-paper oriented" math curriculum.

Knowledge is valuable, but it does not mean anything unless you understand what to do with the knowledge. You can recite the numbers 1 to 10, but that does not mean that you can count a group of toys. So I wanted games and activities that build the understanding before they build the knowledge.

I found Count on Math: Activities for Small Hands and Lively Minds, a book that builds many pre-math skills, and hundreds of simple, easy activities fill its pages. M & R could both do the projects and benefit, not even knowing that they were learning.

Each chapter covers a different skill and contains more than 30 activities for each skill. These skills include (but not limited to) the following:

• Exploration
• Spatial Relationships
• Classification
• Patterns
• One-to-One Correspondence (prepares for division)
• Ordering
• Numbers
• Shapes
• Adding
• Subtracting
• Telling Time

Order Count on Math: Activities for Small Hands and Lively Minds online now!