 | Erin Luchterhand |
Developing healthy money awareness is a skill many adults struggle with. There are so many things that we want or just have to have that our budget (if we created one), flies out the window. My husband and I are currently reading and listening to Dave Ramsey, a Christian financial planner who breaks money management into easy baby steps. Still, it takes a lot of discipline to manage money well. That being said, if most adults struggle with financial planning, then most individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities will too.
There are many ways to break down the topic of money skills, but for now I am going to break it down into three concepts: counting money, budgeting and banking. In this first blog, we will look at specific techniques to teach the basic concept of counting money. In subsequent blogs, we will discuss budgeting and banking.
We encourage our students to budget and spend cash (rather than use a debit card) as it creates more of a visual understanding of how much money they have to spend. Before students can budget their money, they need to know how to count it. As we began this process, I noticed that my students struggled counting money. When I looked into why they were struggling, I discovered that they did great counting in a pattern, but struggled when the pattern changed. For example, all of my students could count by 5s ($5, $10, $15) or by 10s ($10, $20, $30) but had difficulty when asked to count by both 10s and 5s together ($10, $20, $25 $30).
Since we were unable to change the dollar bill to fit our needs, we created a tool to aid students in their counting: a money number line. Each student received a laminated poster board with a money number line that they use to identify the correct way to count. It serves as a “cheat sheet” until students learn the patterns and gradually need the chart less and less.
To create your own money number line (and I highly suggest you do – it works!), cut a poster board in half so you have two long horizontal pieces. Each piece will be a number line. Draw a horizontal line across the long end of the poster board (I like to use fun colored markers!). On the top of the center line, you’ll create spaces for counting 10s. On the bottom, you’ll create spaces for counting 5s. Here is what I did: I measured the size of my practice/play money and drew boxes to fit the money on top and bottom of the line, evenly distributed between each other (i.e. the box on bottom fits directly between two boxes on top). Each money box must be evenly spaced out, so you’ll want to use a ruler. Then, I took a fun colored marker and wrote in the dollar amount each space represented. I started on the bottom and wrote $5 in the first box. Next, I went to the first top box and wrote $10. The next bottom: $15. The next top: $20, and so on up to $100.
There are many ways to break down the topic of money skills, but for now I am going to break it down into three concepts: counting money, budgeting and banking. In this first blog, we will look at specific techniques to teach the basic concept of counting money. In subsequent blogs, we will discuss budgeting and banking.
We encourage our students to budget and spend cash (rather than use a debit card) as it creates more of a visual understanding of how much money they have to spend. Before students can budget their money, they need to know how to count it. As we began this process, I noticed that my students struggled counting money. When I looked into why they were struggling, I discovered that they did great counting in a pattern, but struggled when the pattern changed. For example, all of my students could count by 5s ($5, $10, $15) or by 10s ($10, $20, $30) but had difficulty when asked to count by both 10s and 5s together ($10, $20, $25 $30).
Since we were unable to change the dollar bill to fit our needs, we created a tool to aid students in their counting: a money number line. Each student received a laminated poster board with a money number line that they use to identify the correct way to count. It serves as a “cheat sheet” until students learn the patterns and gradually need the chart less and less.
To create your own money number line (and I highly suggest you do – it works!), cut a poster board in half so you have two long horizontal pieces. Each piece will be a number line. Draw a horizontal line across the long end of the poster board (I like to use fun colored markers!). On the top of the center line, you’ll create spaces for counting 10s. On the bottom, you’ll create spaces for counting 5s. Here is what I did: I measured the size of my practice/play money and drew boxes to fit the money on top and bottom of the line, evenly distributed between each other (i.e. the box on bottom fits directly between two boxes on top). Each money box must be evenly spaced out, so you’ll want to use a ruler. Then, I took a fun colored marker and wrote in the dollar amount each space represented. I started on the bottom and wrote $5 in the first box. Next, I went to the first top box and wrote $10. The next bottom: $15. The next top: $20, and so on up to $100.
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I teach my students to use the money chart by first separating their bills. $1s in a pile, $5s in a pile, $10s in a pile, and $20s in a pile. Because most students count by 5s and 10s already, I start there, giving my students a mix of $10s and $5s. They separate the money into their piles. Knowing they need to start with the “highest bill first,” they begin by placing $10 on the first $10 spot. They continue to place the rest of their $10s on the top line, counting (and reading because it’s labeled) “$10, $20, $30, $40…” Once they run out of $10s, they switch to $5s. They start their $5s on the NEXT $5 and count “$45, $50, $55, $60…” The difference with $5s is that they can be placed on the bottom, or the top, depending on the skip counting. I usually use the phrase “up, down, up, down” to help them remember where to place their $5s. Once students have mastered the use of the money number line with $5s and $10s, introduce $20s by placing them sideways over two $10s, showing that a $20 bill is worth two $10 bills.
This is definitely a concept or tool that you can get creative with. Make your own, and make it your own! Essentially, the students need to learn how to change their pattern when skip counting money. Use the chart until they become fluent and then gradually remove the chart. Many of my students continue to place their practice money in the same pattern as the chart, even when it’s removed! This process can take time and requires (you guessed it!) a lot of repetition, but when practiced consistently, is effective in teaching the basic concept of counting money.
We would love to see the charts and ideas that you come up with based on this blog! Feel free to post pictures of your charts in the comments section below!
This is definitely a concept or tool that you can get creative with. Make your own, and make it your own! Essentially, the students need to learn how to change their pattern when skip counting money. Use the chart until they become fluent and then gradually remove the chart. Many of my students continue to place their practice money in the same pattern as the chart, even when it’s removed! This process can take time and requires (you guessed it!) a lot of repetition, but when practiced consistently, is effective in teaching the basic concept of counting money.
We would love to see the charts and ideas that you come up with based on this blog! Feel free to post pictures of your charts in the comments section below!
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