Estimation and Counting Money with Piggy Banks

We had so much fun with this simple activity!

For years I've had this little, transparent piggy bank that we've used in the classroom to count money everyday. We add pennies to count up to one dollar, symbolizing the first 100 days of school. At some point in the year we trade pennies for nickels, dimes and quarters. 

This year, we did something much different! 

Our students were struggling with estimation. They felt compelled to always count to the exact amount. In order to force them to guess, we took pictures of different amounts of coins inside the transparent piggy bank. We labeled the amounts with a number and later placed the number and its corresponding amount in a plastic baggy. 

Oh, the reactions of students were precious! 

- "But, teacher... we cannot see well"

- "I can't count these!"

- "When do we start? Where are the coins?"

- "Is this a penny... Or a dime?"

We had to discuss very seriously that estimation does not have to render the correct amount. They are so afraid of getting their answer wrong, that estimating is a shame to them!

While they worked in pairs to observe, analyze and come up with an estimation for the amount of money in their pictures, we passed out a worksheet with the instruction to fill out only the estimation part. 

Following a writing prompt, they drew what the observed and wrote a small paragraph explaining their estimation.

After they completed their work, we passed out the bags with money corresponding to their numbered piggy bank. They were able to get the coins out, manipulate them, identify their values and count to the correct amount. With that information they completed the second part of the assignment. Needless to say, there were some students changing their estimation to match the total actual value of the coins!

But for the most part, they were engaged and understood how to come up with an educated guess of their amounts. 

It was really fun to see their faces lite up with excitement, wonderment and a sparkle of wisdom!

You can make your own combinations of coins, but if you are interested in a copy of this activity you can find it here: Free Piggy Banks Estimation

Note: You will find both English and Spanish in the same file.

Happy Teaching!