Follow the Money!

$Follow the Money! book cover$

Grade 2
5 skill lessons · 2 math-through-reading

Math

Skill lessons

The mathematics the book carries, taught directly. Each lesson has printable workbook pages and a separate teacher key.

1Name the Coin, Say the Cents
2Twenty-Five at a Time to a Dollar
3What Comes Back from a Dollar
4Three Things, One Total
5Seventy-Five Cents, Three Ways

Math + reading

Math through the reading

The same book, entered through a sentence it prints. Change one word in the reading and the numbers change with it.

6Change For a Dollar, Change From a Dollar
7How Much Went Into the Meter?

Reading

Reading and language lessons

The same book read as a text. What a word means in its sentence, how a character is shown, how the writing is put together - no mathematics.

8The quarter says I: finding the narrator inside a coin
9Then, Next, Soon, Finally: the words that carry a coin's day
10Money words at the back: reading and using a glossary
11Money doesn't grow on trees: reading a saying twice
12Before there was money: reading a problem-and-solution explanation

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Skill lessons

5 lessons on the mathematics the book carries. Each lesson has printable workbook pages and a separate teacher key.

1. Name the Coin, Say the Cents Concept · Coin values and coin equivalence to one dollar

The book's money words list gives each coin its own sentence of value, and its checkout captions turn one dollar into four quarters and seventy-five cents into three. Students handle the four coins, match each to the sentence that names its worth, fill a dollar mat with quarters while counting by twenty-fives, and then rebuild seventy-five cents out of dimes and nickels so that two unlike piles sit side by side.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Match each coin to its own sentence (5 min)
Each pair spreads out a penny, a nickel, a dime and a quarter, then lays the four value cards face up beside them. As each money-word sentence is read, set the card that matches it on the coin it names. Say the coin's name and its cents out loud before you let go of the card.
Word preview: penny, nickel, dime, quarter
Penny. One cent. One-hundredth of a dollar.
Nickel. Five cents. One-twentieth of a dollar.
Dime. Ten cents. One-tenth of a dollar.
Quarter. Twenty-five cents. One-quarter of a dollar.
2. Build one dollar out of quarters (6 min)
Take four quarters and lay them one at a time onto the four boxes of the dollar mat. Count the cents aloud as each quarter lands: twenty-five, fifty, seventy-five, one hundred. When the mat is full, say how many quarters it took and how many cents that is.
$1 equals 4 times 25 cents.
Dollar. A coin or bill worth one-hundred pennies.
3. Trade for the same amount (5 min)
Set out three quarters and count them by twenty-fives to seventy-five. Now build seventy-five cents again in the second tray using only dimes and nickels, and count that pile aloud too. Put the two trays side by side and say whether they are worth the same.
75 cents equals 3 quarters.
4. Say the value sentence (4 min)
Pick any one coin from your tray and hold it up for your partner. Say the sentence on the strip: this coin is a blank, and it is worth blank cents. Trade coins and say it again until each partner has named all four coins without looking at the value cards.
Change. Coins.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Match each coin to its own sentence (5 min)
Spread out a penny and a quarter with their two value cards. As each money-word sentence is read, set the matching card on the coin it names and say the cents aloud.
Word preview: penny, quarter
Penny. One cent. One-hundredth of a dollar.
Quarter. Twenty-five cents. One-quarter of a dollar.
2. Say the value sentence (4 min)
Hold up one coin for your partner and say the sentence on the strip: this coin is a blank, and it is worth blank cents. Trade and say it again for a second coin.
Word preview: cents
Change. Coins.

Three levels

Support: Work with two coins only, the penny and the quarter, and keep every other part of the lesson whole. Match those two value cards, fill the dollar mat with four quarters while counting by twenty-fives, and say the value sentence for both coins. Bring in the nickel once the quarter is automatic, and the dime last.
At Grade: Handle all four coins and run the trade in both directions: three quarters counted to seventy-five, then dimes and nickels counted to seventy-five in the second tray. Count each pile aloud and finish by saying the value sentence for every coin with the value cards turned face down.
Extension: Build seventy-five cents a third way using at least one of every coin you have, then prove to your partner that all three trays are worth the same by counting each one aloud from the largest coin down. Say which tray holds the most coins, and say why more coins did not make more money.

English learners

The four coin names are arbitrary in every currency, and the English habit of putting the value after the name rather than in place of it: a quarter is worth twenty-five cents, and the two are not two different coins. Drill one sentence until it runs without thinking: the coin's name, then its worth in cents. Invite students to count each tray in their home language first, then say the frame in English while holding the coin up.

Materials

Coin sets: pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters, real or plastic
Coin value cards showing 1 cent, 5 cents, 10 cents and 25 cents
Four quarters for each pair
A one-dollar mat divided into four boxes
Dimes and nickels for trading
Two sorting trays per pair
Value sentence strip: this coin is a ____, and it is worth ____ cents
Word cards: dime, nickel, penny, quarter

Workbook

Print these for the class. They carry your edits, and they print in black and white.

Coin Value Cards and Coin Word Cards card set

Follow the Money! - Name the Coin, Say the Cents

Coin value cards

Cut on the lines. Lay these four cards face up beside your coins.

Coin word cards

Cut on the lines. One coin word on each card.

One-Dollar Mat full page

Follow the Money! - Name the Coin, Say the Cents

One-dollar mat

Put one quarter in each box. Count the cents out loud as each quarter lands.

Value Sentence Strips strip set

Follow the Money! - Name the Coin, Say the Cents

Value sentence strips

Cut on the lines. Hold up a coin and say your strip to your partner.

This coin is a ____________________ ,

and it is worth ______________ cents.

Teacher key (3 pages) — not for the class

Teacher Key: Coin Value Cards and Coin Word Cards half page

Follow the Money! - Name the Coin, Say the Cents - Teacher Key

Card set: expected matches

1 cent card goes on the penny.
5 cents card goes on the nickel.
10 cents card goes on the dime.
25 cents card goes on the quarter.

Word cards

The four word cards carry the coin names only: dime, nickel, penny, quarter. There is no matching answer for them; they are the words the pair says while they place the value cards.

Read for

A close response names the coin and its cents together before the card is let go, as in a dime, ten cents. A loose response places the card correctly but says only the number, or names the coin by its size rather than its value.

Teacher Key: One-Dollar Mat half page

Follow the Money! - Name the Coin, Say the Cents - Teacher Key

One-dollar mat: expected responses

Counted aloud, one quarter to a box: twenty-five, fifty, seventy-five, one hundred.
It took four quarters to fill the mat.
That is one hundred cents, which is one dollar.

Read for

A close response counts on from the last total as each coin lands and finishes with both answers, four quarters and one hundred cents. A loose response restarts the count at twenty-five for every coin, or gives the number of coins without the amount.

Teacher Key: Value Sentence Strips half page

Follow the Money! - Name the Coin, Say the Cents - Teacher Key

Accepted completions, one for each coin

penny, 1
nickel, 5
dime, 10
quarter, 25

Read for

A close response fills both blanks in one breath, with the coin name first and the cents after it, and by the end runs without the value cards in view. A loose response needs the cards turned face up again, or swaps the order and says twenty-five cents is a quarter coin.

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

2. Twenty-Five at a Time to a Dollar Fluency · Counting on by twenty-fives to one hundred cents

A young man is handed four quarters, sends three of them into a parking meter and keeps one in a pocket, and elsewhere a dollar is stated as four twenty-fives. Students run that count until it is quick: around a circle, onto a dollar's worth of quarters, along a number track from zero to one hundred, and back down again.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Warm up the count (4 min)
Stand in a circle and count around by twenty-fives: twenty-five, fifty, seventy-five, one hundred, then begin again. Clap once every time the count reaches one hundred. Sit down and run the count again with your partner's four quarters in front of you, touching one coin for each number word.
Word preview: quarters
$1 equals 4 times 25 cents.
2. Count the meter money (5 min)
Lay out the four quarters the store owner handed over. Move three of them into the meter cup one at a time, counting on aloud as each drops: twenty-five, fifty, seventy-five. Say how many cents went into the meter, then put the fourth quarter on the pocket card and say how many cents stayed there.
So the store owner gave him 4 quarters, including yours truly.
Three of us went into a parking meter, but I ended up in the young man's pocket.
3. Fill the quarter track (7 min)
Work along the number track marked from zero to one hundred. Drop quarters onto the track one at a time and clip a marker where each new total lands: twenty-five, fifty, seventy-five, one hundred. Run it a second time with twenty-five already clipped, and say every total out loud as you mark it.
Word preview: cents
75 cents equals 3 quarters.
4. Say the count back (4 min)
Start with one hundred cents clipped on the track. Take one quarter off at a time, saying the new total each time: seventy-five, fifty, twenty-five, none left. After each removal tell your partner how many cents are gone and how many are left.
Word preview: minus
$1 minus 75 cents equals 25 cents.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Count the meter money (5 min)
Lay out four quarters. Move three into the meter cup one at a time, counting on aloud: twenty-five, fifty, seventy-five. Say the amount in the meter, then put the last quarter on the pocket card and say what stayed there.
Word preview: parking meter
Three of us went into a parking meter, but I ended up in the young man's pocket.
2. Say the count back (4 min)
Start from one hundred cents and take one quarter away at a time, saying the new total each time: seventy-five, fifty, twenty-five, none left.
Word preview: minus
$1 minus 75 cents equals 25 cents.

Three levels

Support: Keep the count but shrink the range: work only to seventy-five cents with three quarters and the first three marks on the track. Say every total aloud as a coin lands, and bring in the fourth quarter once seventy-five arrives without hesitating.
At Grade: Count on by twenty-fives from zero to one hundred and back down to zero along the track, saying every total. Run the meter round with the four quarters and name both amounts: what went into the meter and what stayed in the pocket.
Extension: Put three pennies on the track first, then count on by twenty-fives from three: three, twenty-eight, fifty-three, seventy-eight. Say each total aloud, then set the two counts side by side and tell your partner why every total on this track sits exactly three cents above the plain quarter count.

English learners

Two-digit totals are where word order bites, and seventy-five in particular, which many students hear as two separate numbers. Model the chain as a four-beat chant: 'twenty-five, fifty, seventy-five, one hundred.' Let students count the coins in their own language while their hands move, then say only the final total in English while holding the pile up.

Materials

Four quarters for each pair
A paper cup labelled parking meter
A pocket card
A number track strip marked 0 to 100 in tens
Clips to mark totals
Word cards: cents, minus, quarters

Workbook

Print these for the class. They carry your edits, and they print in black and white.

Number Track, 0 to 100 strip set

Follow the Money! - Twenty-Five at a Time to a Dollar

Number track

Cut out a track. Clip a marker on the track at each new total.

Pocket Cards card set

Follow the Money! - Twenty-Five at a Time to a Dollar

Pocket cards

Cut on the lines. Put the quarter that stayed behind on your pocket card.

Word Cards card set

Follow the Money! - Twenty-Five at a Time to a Dollar

Word cards

Cut on the lines. One word on each card.

Teacher key (2 pages) — not for the class

Teacher Key: Number Track, 0 to 100 half page

Follow the Money! - Twenty-Five at a Time to a Dollar - Teacher Key

Where the clips land, going up

25, then 50, then 75, then 100.
25 and 75 sit halfway between two marks on the track; 50 and 100 sit on a mark.
Second run, with 25 already clipped: 50, then 75, then 100.

Coming back down, one quarter off at a time

75 cents left, 25 cents gone.
50 cents left, 50 cents gone.
25 cents left, 75 cents gone.
None left, one hundred cents gone.

Read for

A close response says each new total without going back to the beginning, and on the way down names both amounts, gone and left. A loose response recounts from twenty-five every time, or on the way down says only the coins removed.

Teacher Key: Pocket Cards half page

Follow the Money! - Twenty-Five at a Time to a Dollar - Teacher Key

Expected responses

Counted into the meter, one quarter at a time: twenty-five, fifty, seventy-five.
Seventy-five cents went into the meter.
Twenty-five cents stayed on the pocket card.
The four quarters together are one hundred cents.

Read for

A close response gives both amounts in cents and can point to the coins that make each one. A loose response answers with the number of quarters only, three and one, without converting either to cents.

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

3. What Comes Back from a Dollar Application · Finding the change left from one dollar

Twice in this book a dollar goes out and something comes back: a vending machine returns a quarter because the buyer had no exact change, and a checkout hands a quarter back at the end of a sale. Students set a price, pay with a paper dollar, and find the change twice over, once by counting up from the price to one hundred cents and once by subtracting, then write the sentence for each of three prices.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Set the price and pay the dollar (6 min)
Each pair puts the seventy-five cent price card in the price square and builds that amount with three quarters. Lay the paper dollar in the paid square beside it. Say what the buyer is handing over and what the item costs. Then work out how much comes back. Set those coins in the change square.
Word preview: change
75 cents equals 3 quarters.
$1 minus 75 cents equals 25 cents.
2. Count up to the dollar (4 min)
Do the same price a second way. Start at seventy-five cents and count up to one hundred with coins. Add one coin at a time, until the pile on the mat reaches a dollar. Say the amount you added, because that amount is the change.
Word preview: count up
Thank you. Your change is a quarter.
3. Run the other two prices (5 min)
Take the sixty-cent card and then the ninety-cent card. Build each price, hand over the paper dollar, and lay out the change that comes back. Write the subtraction sentence for each price on your slate, the way the book writes its money sentences.
Word preview: minus
75 cents minus 15 cents equals 60 cents.
4. Decide whether it is exact (5 min)
One partner takes only two dimes and a nickel and faces the seventy-five cent price. Count that money aloud and decide together whether it pays the price exactly, then say how many cents are still needed. Hand over the paper dollar instead and lay out the change that comes back.
Word preview: exact
She didn't have exact change.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Count up to the dollar (4 min)
Put the seventy-five cent price on the mat and lay the paper dollar beside it. Start at seventy-five and count up to one hundred with coins, then say the amount you added, because that amount is the change.
Word preview: count up
$1 minus 75 cents equals 25 cents.
2. Run the other two prices (5 min)
Take the sixty-cent card and then the ninety-cent card. Build each price, hand over the dollar, lay out the change, and write one subtraction sentence for each price.
Word preview: minus
75 cents minus 15 cents equals 60 cents.

Three levels

Support: Keep the dollar, the mat and both methods, but work one price only: seventy-five cents built from three quarters. Find the change by counting up a quarter at a time to one hundred, say the amount aloud before writing it, and take the second price card only once the first is quick.
At Grade: Run all three prices with the paper dollar, find each change by counting up and again by subtracting, and write the three subtraction sentences. Say each change amount in cents and name the coins that make it.
Extension: Take the ninety-cent price and find every different set of coins that makes its ten cents of change. Then settle this with your partner: which set would you rather be handed, and say why the number of coins can change while the amount cannot.

English learners

The word change is the trap, because it also means to become different, and because English says change from a dollar where many languages say what is left over. Walk through two sentences side by side, one naming the price in cents and one naming the change in cents. Invite students to count up to the dollar in their everyday language and then report only the change amount in English using the second frame.

Materials

Price cards showing 75 cents, 60 cents and 90 cents
Coins for each pair: quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies
A paper dollar for each pair
A pay mat with squares for price, paid and change
Slates or half sheets and pencils
Two dimes and one nickel set aside for each pair
Word cards: change, count up, exact, minus

Workbook

Print these for the class. They carry your edits, and they print in black and white.

Pay Mat full page

Follow the Money! - What Comes Back from a Dollar

Pay mat

Put the price card in the first square. Lay the dollar in the second square.

Set the coins that come back in the third square.

Price Cards and Word Cards card set

Follow the Money! - What Comes Back from a Dollar

Price cards

Cut on the lines. One price goes in the price square at a time.

Word cards

Cut on the lines. One word on each card.

Change Sentence Sheet half page

Follow the Money! - What Comes Back from a Dollar

Change sentences

Write one subtraction sentence for each price.

75 cents

________________________________

60 cents

________________________________

90 cents

________________________________

Teacher key (2 pages) — not for the class

Teacher Key: Pay Mat full page

Follow the Money! - What Comes Back from a Dollar - Teacher Key

Change that comes back from the dollar

75 cents: 25 cents comes back. One quarter, or two dimes and a nickel.
60 cents: 40 cents comes back. One quarter and one dime and one nickel, or four dimes.
90 cents: 10 cents comes back. One dime, or two nickels.

Counting up, the second method

From 75 cents, adding one quarter reaches 100 cents, so the change is 25 cents. This is the same amount the lesson states as a subtraction: $1 minus 75 cents equals 25 cents.

Deciding whether it is exact

Two dimes and a nickel count 10, 20, 25. That is 25 cents.
It does not pay the 75 cent price exactly. 50 cents more is still needed.
Paying with the dollar instead brings 25 cents back.

Read for

A close response names the change in cents and can lay out coins that make it, and reaches the same amount by both methods. A loose response counts the coins in the change square but cannot say the amount, or gives an amount that the coins on the mat do not add to.

Teacher Key: Change Sentence Sheet half page

Follow the Money! - What Comes Back from a Dollar - Teacher Key

Expected sentences

$1 minus 75 cents equals 25 cents.
$1 minus 60 cents equals 40 cents.
$1 minus 90 cents equals 10 cents.

Also accept

The same three lines written with the dollar as one hundred cents, for example 100 cents minus 60 cents equals 40 cents. Accept a missing dollar sign at this grade if the amounts and the answer are right.

Read for

A close response keeps the three parts in order, the dollar first, the price taken away, the change last, and the change matches the coins the pair laid in the change square. A loose response writes the two amounts with no operation between them, or writes the change first.

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

4. Three Things, One Total Application · Adding three whole-dollar prices to find one total

At the pet store the book adds three whole-dollar prices and states the sum, then a clerk asks for that amount. Students build the three prices with paper dollars in separate trays, join them and count in tens and ones, add the same three a second way by counting on, write the sentence with dollar signs, and then work backwards to a hidden price when the total is known.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Read the three prices (5 min)
Sit with the three pet store price cards face up: five dollars, eight dollars, twelve dollars. Say each price aloud and build it with paper dollars in its own tray. Leave the three trays apart for now.
Word preview: total
$5 plus $8 plus $12 equals $25.
2. Join the trays (6 min)
Pour the three trays together and count the whole pile in tens and ones, sliding each ten across as you say it. Then add the same three prices a second way: put five and eight together, say that number aloud, and count on twelve. Check that both ways land on the same amount.
Word preview: plus
That will be $25, please.
3. Write the total sentence (4 min)
Write the addition the way the book writes its money sentences, with a dollar sign on every amount, and finish the line with the total. Read your line aloud to your partner and point at the pile as you say the last number.
Word preview: equals
4. Find the missing price (5 min)
Your partner hides one of the three price cards behind the folder and leaves the twenty-five dollar total showing. Count the dollars still on the table and work out what the hidden card must say. Say the missing price aloud, then turn the card over to check.
Word preview: missing
Then they came to the checkout.
People found the products they wanted.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Read the three prices (5 min)
Put the three pet store price cards face up: five dollars, eight dollars, twelve dollars. Say each price aloud and build it with paper dollars in its own tray, leaving the trays apart.
Word preview: total
$5 plus $8 plus $12 equals $25.
2. Write the total sentence (4 min)
Pour the trays together, count the pile in tens and ones, then write the addition with a dollar sign on every amount and finish the line with the total. Read your line aloud to your partner.
Word preview: equals

Three levels

Support: Keep the trays, the pile and the written sentence, but count the joined pile once, in tens and ones, instead of adding a second way. Say each ten aloud as you slide it across, and write the same addition sentence every other pair writes.
At Grade: Add the three prices both ways, the whole pile in tens and ones and five plus eight counted on by twelve, and write the sentence with a dollar sign on every amount. Then find the hidden price from the total and the two cards still showing.
Extension: Hold the total at twenty-five dollars and keep the five-dollar price on the table. Work out what the third price would have to be if the twelve-dollar item were replaced by a fifteen-dollar one, and tell your partner how you know the pile cannot grow past twenty-five.

English learners

Two habits need naming: total standing alone for the whole amount, and the split between writing the dollar sign in front of a number and saying the word dollars after it. Rehearse the frame: 'Five plus eight plus twelve equals ____ dollars.' Students may add and check in their strongest language, then read only the finished sentence aloud in English while pointing at the pile.

Materials

Pet store price cards for $5, $8 and $12
Paper dollars, at least twenty-five per pair
Three small trays per pair
Ten-frames or a tens-and-ones mat
Slates or half sheets and pencils
A folder to hide one price card
Word cards: equals, missing, plus, total

Workbook

Print these for the class. They carry your edits, and they print in black and white.

Pet Store Price Cards and Word Cards card set

Follow the Money! - Three Things, One Total

Pet store price cards

Cut on the lines. Lay the three prices face up, one for each tray.

Word cards

Cut on the lines. One word on each card.

Tens-and-Ones Mat full page

Follow the Money! - Three Things, One Total

Tens-and-ones mat

Pour the three trays together onto this mat.

Slide each ten dollars across to the tens side. Leave the rest on the ones side.

Total Sentence Sheet half page

Follow the Money! - Three Things, One Total

Total sentence

Write the addition for the three pet store prices. Put a dollar sign on every amount.

________________________________________________________________

Teacher key (3 pages) — not for the class

Teacher Key: Pet Store Price Cards half page

Follow the Money! - Three Things, One Total - Teacher Key

The hidden card, with the total showing as twenty-five dollars

$8 and $12 still showing: the hidden card is $5.
$5 and $12 still showing: the hidden card is $8.
$5 and $8 still showing: the hidden card is $12.

Read for

A close response counts the dollars still on the table and takes that amount from twenty-five, and says the missing price before turning the card over. A loose response guesses a price and then checks the card, or adds the two showing prices and stops there.

Teacher Key: Tens-and-Ones Mat half page

Follow the Money! - Three Things, One Total - Teacher Key

Expected responses

The joined pile is twenty-five dollars.
Counted on the mat: two tens on the tens side and five ones on the ones side, ten, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five.
The second way: five and eight make thirteen, then count on twelve to reach twenty-five.
Both ways land on the same amount, twenty-five dollars.

Read for

A close response reaches twenty-five both ways and says so without being asked which one was right. A loose response counts the pile in ones only, or reports two different totals and settles on the second without checking.

Teacher Key: Total Sentence Sheet half page

Follow the Money! - Three Things, One Total - Teacher Key

Expected sentence

$5 plus $8 plus $12 equals $25.

Also accept

The three prices written in a different order, for example $12 plus $5 plus $8 equals $25, since the total is the same. Accept the plus and equals signs in place of the words.

Read for

A close response carries a dollar sign on all four amounts and ends the line with the total. A loose response writes the numbers without dollar signs, or stops after the three prices and leaves the total unwritten.

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

5. Seventy-Five Cents, Three Ways Representation · Representing one money amount with different sets of coins

Seventy-five cents pays for a balloon and the amount is called three quarters, which is one way to carry it and not the only way. Students build seventy-five cents three times over, once as the book does, once with no quarter at all, and once with a quarter and a nickel together, drawing each set as a row of labelled circles.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Build the book's version (4 min)
Lay three quarters in a row and count them aloud by twenty-fives to seventy-five. Draw that row in the first line of your recording sheet as three circles with 25 written inside each one.
Word preview: quarters
75 cents equals 3 quarters.
2. Build it a second way (6 min)
Now make seventy-five cents again without using a single quarter. Count your pile aloud from the largest coin down and check that it stops exactly at seventy-five. Draw this row under the first, writing the value inside every circle.
Word preview: value
3. Build it a third way (5 min)
Make seventy-five cents a third time, this time using at least one quarter and at least one nickel. Draw it in the last row of the sheet. Count all three rows aloud one after another and stop each count at seventy-five.
Word preview: exchange
The lady gave me to the clown in exchange for a balloon.
4. Say what stayed the same (5 min)
Circle the row that used the fewest coins and the row that used the most. Tell your partner how many coins are in each of those two rows. Then read the strip aloud: these rows look different, and they are all worth seventy-five cents.
Word preview: cents
Change. Coins.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Build the book's version (4 min)
Lay three quarters in a row and count them aloud by twenty-fives to seventy-five. Draw that row as three circles with 25 written inside each one.
Word preview: quarters
75 cents equals 3 quarters.
2. Say what stayed the same (5 min)
Build seventy-five cents once more without a quarter and draw it under the first row. Say how many coins are in each row, then read the strip aloud: these rows look different, and they are all worth seventy-five cents.
Word preview: cents
Change. Coins.

Three levels

Support: Keep all three rows, but build the second and third rows from dimes and nickels only, so every count runs in tens and fives. Count each pile aloud as you place it and stop at seventy-five, then draw the row exactly as it sits on the desk.
At Grade: Build three genuinely different sets worth seventy-five cents, including one with no quarter and one holding a quarter and a nickel together. Draw each row with the value written inside every circle, then say the sentence naming what all three rows share.
Extension: Find the set with the fewest possible coins for seventy-five cents and prove it to your partner: show that swapping any one coin for smaller coins always makes the row longer. Then find the fewest coins for sixty cents and say which of the two amounts needs more coins.

English learners

English names one amount two ways at once, three quarters and seventy-five cents, as though the two phrases were interchangeable nouns. Rehearse the frame: 'This row is ____ coins, and it is worth ____ cents.' Let students count and compare rows in their strongest language, then use the frame in English while pointing along each row.

Materials

Three quarters per pair
A coin recording sheet with three empty rows
Dimes, nickels and pennies in a shared tub
Sentence strip: these rows look different, and they are all worth ____ cents
Word cards: cents, exchange, quarters, value

Workbook

Print these for the class. They carry your edits, and they print in black and white.

Coin Recording Sheet full page

Follow the Money! - Seventy-Five Cents, Three Ways

Coin recording sheet

Draw each set of coins as a row of circles. Write the value inside every circle.

Sentence Strips strip set

Follow the Money! - Seventy-Five Cents, Three Ways

Sentence strips

Cut on the lines. Read your strip aloud to your partner.

These rows look different,

and they are all worth ______________ cents.

Word Cards card set

Follow the Money! - Seventy-Five Cents, Three Ways

Word cards

Cut on the lines. One word on each card.

Teacher key (2 pages) — not for the class

Teacher Key: Coin Recording Sheet full page

Follow the Money! - Seventy-Five Cents, Three Ways - Teacher Key

Row 1, the book's version

Three circles, 25 in each. Counted by twenty-fives: twenty-five, fifty, seventy-five.

Row 2, no quarter at all

There is no single right set. Any row that counts to exactly seventy-five with no 25 in it is correct. Sets students commonly build:

Seven dimes and one nickel.
Six dimes and three nickels.
Five dimes and five nickels.
Seven dimes and five pennies.

Row 3, at least one quarter and at least one nickel

Two quarters, two dimes and one nickel.
Two quarters and five nickels.
One quarter, four dimes and two nickels.

What stayed the same

Every row is worth seventy-five cents. The row with the fewest coins is row 1, three quarters. The row with the most coins is whichever row used the smallest coins; it is not fixed, so take the pair's own count.

Support

Rows 2 and 3 built from dimes and nickels only still stop at seventy-five, for example seven dimes and one nickel, or six dimes and three nickels.

Read for

A strong response counts each row from the largest coin down and lands on seventy-five without adjusting the pile afterwards, and says that the rows differ in the number of coins but not in what they are worth. A loose response draws three rows that look different but leaves one of them short or over, or answers that the row with more coins is worth more.

Teacher Key: Sentence Strips half page

Follow the Money! - Seventy-Five Cents, Three Ways - Teacher Key

Expected completion

The blank is 75. Read aloud: these rows look different, and they are all worth seventy-five cents.

Read for

A close response says seventy-five as one number and points along the rows while saying it. A loose response says the coin names instead of the amount, for example three quarters, which is one row rather than what all three rows share.

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

Math through the reading

The mathematics is reached through a sentence the book prints: change one word in the reading and the numbers change with it. These carry their own standards, matched against these lessons rather than inherited from the skill ones.

6. Change For a Dollar, Change From a Dollar Integrated · Students swap one preposition in a sentence the book actually contains and build the two different amounts the two versions demand.

Students swap one preposition in a sentence the book actually contains and build the two different amounts the two versions demand.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Read the sentence and say what it asks for (4 min)
Students read the book's sentence from the strip twice, then tell a partner what the shopkeeper has to do about it: who holds the dollar, what they want instead, and whether anything is being bought.
2. Build change for a dollar (4 min)
Students lay four quarters into the four boxes of the dollar mat, counting aloud to one hundred, and say how many coins the dollar became and how many cents that is.
3. Swap one word and build it again (5 min)
Students write the swapped word onto the blank strip, read the new sentence aloud, then clear the mat, set the seventy-five cent price, hand over the paper dollar and lay out what comes back. They say the new amount aloud while pointing at the change square.
4. Write both sentences with their amounts and defend the pair (7 min)
Students write the two sentences one above the other, underline the changed word, and write the cents amount each one produced. Each pair then reads both lines to another pair and says why one word, and only that word, moved the answer from four coins to one.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Build change for a dollar (4 min)
Students lay four quarters into the four boxes of the dollar mat, counting aloud to one hundred, and say how many coins the dollar became and how many cents that is.
2. Swap one word and build it again (5 min)
Students write the swapped word onto the blank strip, read the new sentence aloud, then clear the mat, set the seventy-five cent price, hand over the paper dollar and lay out what comes back. They say the new amount aloud while pointing at the change square.

Three levels

Support: Keep both sentences and both arrangements, but hand the pair the swapped strip already written so the reading is a comparison rather than a construction. Students still read both sentences aloud, still say what each asks for, and still build both results with their own hands.
At grade: Write the swapped sentence, read both aloud, build both arrangements, and record the cents amount under each. Say which word carries the difference and what each version asks a shopkeeper to do.
Extension: Keep the price at seventy-five cents and find a different single word to change in the book's sentence that also moves the mathematics. Test it on another pair: read them only your new sentence and see which arrangement they build. If they build the one you expected, say what in your word told them; if not, say what misled them.

English learners

Number and operation transfer completely, and a student who can subtract seventy-five from one hundred is not lacking the mathematics. Prepositions do not transfer, and for and from are among the least predictable in English; a student may read both sentences correctly as English and still not know which one asks for a subtraction. Anchor the two with gestures before the strips are read: for a dollar, hands opening apart, and from a dollar, one hand taking away. Rehearse the frame 'This sentence asks me to ____ .' Students may reason and count in their strongest language and give the amount in English.

Materials

A strip carrying the book's sentence about change for a dollar
A blank strip and a pencil for the swapped sentence
Four quarters per pair
A one-dollar mat divided into four boxes
A pay mat with squares for price, paid and change
A price card for 75 cents
A paper dollar for each pair
Slates or half sheets and pencils
The two sentences side by side with the changed word underlined

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

IB PYP developmental alignment

Phases are not grades. The Primary Years Programme is a developmental continuum and your school places each student in a phase, so this names the strand the lesson works in and the phases it could sit across. Confirm against your own school's placement.

Measurement · Phases 1–4

Phase 1: Compare and describe measurable attributes of objects and sequence familiar events using direct experience and non-standard units.
Phase 2: Use standard units, estimation, measuring tools, calendars, money, temperature, and time to describe and solve practical problems.
Phase 3: Measure perimeter, area, and volume; select appropriate units and tools; interpret scales and develop angle as a measure of rotation.
Phase 4: Use procedures and formulas for perimeter, area, and volume; convert units, determine required accuracy, and measure and construct angles.

Number · Phases 1–4

Phase 1: Develop meaning for counting, quantity, number relationships, simple operations, and early fractions in meaningful contexts.
Phase 2: Develop place value and whole-number operations, mental strategies, fractions, and mathematical language for practical problem solving.
Phase 3: Extend number understanding to larger numbers, fractions, decimals, percentages, and efficient strategies for the four operations.
Phase 4: Apply whole-number, fraction, decimal, percentage, ratio, and proportion concepts with increasingly efficient and flexible computation.

7. How Much Went Into the Meter? Integrated · Students find an amount the book never states by working out which quarter is speaking, then read aloud the sentence that funds their answer before they say the number.

Students find an amount the book never states by working out which quarter is speaking, then read aloud the sentence that funds their answer before they say the number.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Hear the three sentences and mark the one that counts (5 min)
Students follow along on their strips while the three sentences are read aloud twice, then underline the one sentence that says how many quarters went into the meter. They say aloud who the narrator is and how they know.
2. Put the quarters where the text puts them (4 min)
Students lay out four quarters, move the number the text names into the meter cup and put the remaining coin on the pocket card, saying which sentence sent each coin where.
3. Find the cents in the meter (5 min)
Students count the coins in the cup by twenty-fives, say the total, then check it a second way by starting at one hundred cents and taking away the quarter on the pocket card. They write both amounts down.
4. Read the evidence line, then say the number (6 min)
Each pair reads its underlined sentence aloud to another pair and then, and only then, says the amount in the meter and the amount in the pocket. The listening pair says whether the sentence read aloud is the one that actually fixes the count, or whether it only mentions quarters.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Put the quarters where the text puts them (4 min)
Students lay out four quarters, move the number the text names into the meter cup and put the remaining coin on the pocket card, saying which sentence sent each coin where.
2. Find the cents in the meter (5 min)
Students count the coins in the cup by twenty-fives, say the total, then check it a second way by starting at one hundred cents and taking away the quarter on the pocket card. They write both amounts down.

Three levels

Support: Work with the quarters in hand from the first moment: as each sentence is read aloud, move the coins it describes before the next sentence begins, so the pronouns are settled by the coins rather than held in memory. Students still underline the deciding sentence, still count the cup and still say both amounts.
At grade: Underline the deciding sentence, arrange all four coins as the text arranges them, find the amount in the meter by counting on and check it by subtracting from one hundred, and read the evidence aloud before saying the number.
Extension: Answer this for the listening pair, using the amounts: if the narrator had gone into the meter along with the other three, how much would the meter hold and how much would be left in the pocket? Then say which single sentence in the text rules that version out, and read it aloud.

English learners

Counting by twenty-fives and subtracting from one hundred transfer whole; the arithmetic here is not the barrier. English pronouns are the barrier, and they are unusually heavy in this passage: us and I refer to coins rather than people, and three of us means three out of a group already named several sentences earlier. Reread those sentences slowly and let students point at coins instead of translating. Rehearse the frame 'The sentence that tells me is ____ , so ____ quarters went in.' Students may reason and count in their strongest language and give both amounts in English.

Materials

Four quarters per pair
A paper cup labelled parking meter
A pocket card
Three sentence strips carrying the sentences that fix the condition
A crayon or highlighter for underlining
Slates or half sheets and pencils
The three sentences enlarged for rereading aloud

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

IB PYP developmental alignment

Measurement · Phases 1–4

Phase 1: Compare and describe measurable attributes of objects and sequence familiar events using direct experience and non-standard units.
Phase 2: Use standard units, estimation, measuring tools, calendars, money, temperature, and time to describe and solve practical problems.
Phase 3: Measure perimeter, area, and volume; select appropriate units and tools; interpret scales and develop angle as a measure of rotation.
Phase 4: Use procedures and formulas for perimeter, area, and volume; convert units, determine required accuracy, and measure and construct angles.

Number · Phases 1–4

Phase 1: Develop meaning for counting, quantity, number relationships, simple operations, and early fractions in meaningful contexts.
Phase 2: Develop place value and whole-number operations, mental strategies, fractions, and mathematical language for practical problem solving.
Phase 3: Extend number understanding to larger numbers, fractions, decimals, percentages, and efficient strategies for the four operations.
Phase 4: Apply whole-number, fraction, decimal, percentage, ratio, and proportion concepts with increasingly efficient and flexible computation.

Reading and language lessons

5 lessons on the reading and language the book carries - what a word means in its sentence, how a character is shown, how a text is built. No mathematics: these are matched against the English language arts curricula, which are a different and smaller set than the mathematics ones.

8. The quarter says I: finding the narrator inside a coin Concept · First-person narrator: naming the I who tells the story

This book is told by a quarter, in the first person, from the moment it is stamped to the moment it is banked again. Students underline the I, me and we in the printed lines, name the narrator out loud, then read the same lines twice — once as a person, once as the coin — to hear which words only work in the coin's mouth. They finish by marking the lines the coin can know from the lines it can only wonder about, and writing one sentence of their own in the coin's voice. Nothing is counted or added; the work is holding the narrator steady across a day that changes hands eight times.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Find out who is talking (5 min)
Read the opening aloud with a partner, one sentence each. Underline every I, me and we you find, then say out loud who that I is. It is not a person: it is the quarter, telling its own day to another coin. Write the answer on your sticky note in four words or fewer.
Word preview: narrator, I
So, George, how was your day? I was under a lot of pressure at first. Ouch! We're in mint condition. I was stamped out at the US Mint. Then I fell into a bag. Let me out of here. We were all loaded into a truck. Where are they taking us? The driver took us to a Federal Reserve Bank. Next, we went to a local bank.
2. Say the same line as a person, then as the coin (5 min)
Take turns reading the printed lines twice. First read them as a person who dropped a coin; then read them again as the coin itself, lying on the ground. Tell your partner which words only make sense in the coin's mouth. No one noticed me for a long time is the line to argue about.
Word preview: narrator
I wasn't in the pocket long. There was a hole in it. Uh-oh. Help! I bounced along, then rolled to a stop. No one noticed me for a long time. Hey, watch it! Finally, a little girl rescued me. I found a quarter. Thank you so much, miss.
3. Mark the lines the coin cannot know (6 min)
Read both printed passages and put a check beside every line the coin can know because it was there, and a question mark beside every line it could only guess. I wonder where she will take me gets a question mark, because a wonder is not a fact. Say to your partner why a narrator who is stuck in a pocket cannot tell you everything.
Word preview: wonder, point of view
I wonder where she will take me. We were bouncing around in a very dark place.
The clown dropped me into a vending machine. Hey, it's cold and dark in here. I was trapped. Then I heard footsteps. She didn't have exact change. So I escaped.
4. Write one line in the coin's voice (4 min)
Read the last two printed lines of the day. Then write one new sentence the quarter could say about tomorrow, starting with I. Use a word from the printed lines. Read your sentence aloud in the coin's voice and let your partner say whether it still sounds like the coin and not like you.
Word preview: voice
It sounds as if you had a great day. I wonder where I'll go tomorrow.
Please add this to my savings account. I was back in the bank again. Wee!

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Find out who is talking (5 min)
Read the opening aloud with a partner, one sentence each. Underline every I, me and we, then say out loud who that I is. It is the quarter telling its own day.
Word preview: narrator, I
So, George, how was your day? I was under a lot of pressure at first. Ouch! We're in mint condition. I was stamped out at the US Mint. Then I fell into a bag. Let me out of here. We were all loaded into a truck. Where are they taking us? The driver took us to a Federal Reserve Bank. Next, we went to a local bank.
2. Mark the lines the coin cannot know (4 min)
Read both printed passages. Check every line the coin can know because it was there; question-mark every line it could only guess. Say why a narrator stuck in a pocket cannot tell you everything.
Word preview: wonder, point of view
I wonder where she will take me. We were bouncing around in a very dark place.
The clown dropped me into a vending machine. Hey, it's cold and dark in here. I was trapped. Then I heard footsteps. She didn't have exact change. So I escaped.

Three levels

Support: Stay with the opening passage from the first step only. Underline the I words with a partner and say the narrator's name aloud — the quarter — before writing anything. Say the sentence I am the quarter, and I am telling my own day, and stop there.
At Grade: Work the opening passage and the pocket passage. Underline the I words, name the narrator, then read the pocket lines both ways — as a person, then as the coin — and name one word that only the coin could say.
Extension: Using the third step's two passages, explain to a partner what this narrator cannot tell the reader. Point to I wonder where she will take me on the printed strip and say what a person standing in the room would have known that the coin does not.

English learners

First-person narration transfers: every language a child brings has an I, and a story told by an object is a familiar shape in many of them. English marks the narrator with a single unstressed word that is easy to miss when read fast. Rehearse the frame "The I in this book is the ____." while pointing at an underlined I on the strip. Invite students to retell the opening in their strongest language first, then say the English frame; both count as knowing who is talking.

Materials

Printed passage strips
Sticky notes
Coloured pencils for underlining
Two role cards labelled person and coin
Check-and-question-mark marking sheet
Lined writing slip
Word cards: narrator, I, wonder, point of view, voice

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

9. Then, Next, Soon, Finally: the words that carry a coin's day Application · Time-order words and retelling a sequence

The whole book is one day in order, and the order is carried by small words a second grader can miss: Then, Next, Finally, Soon, After a long time. Students circle those words on the printed strips, read the same lines with the words removed to hear what breaks, and lay event cards in the order the printed lines give. They then retell three events aloud to a partner using their own time words, and write the last two events in order. No student counts events or coins; the work is holding a sequence and naming the word that pins each event to its place.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Circle the words that move the day forward (5 min)
Read the opening aloud and circle every word that tells you when: Then, Next. Read it once more with the circled words left out and tell your partner what breaks. Lay the four event cards in the order the printed lines give them, and keep them in that order on your desk.
Word preview: Then, Next
So, George, how was your day? I was under a lot of pressure at first. Ouch! We're in mint condition. I was stamped out at the US Mint. Then I fell into a bag. Let me out of here. We were all loaded into a truck. Where are they taking us? The driver took us to a Federal Reserve Bank. Next, we went to a local bank.
2. Find the time word that says a long wait happened (5 min)
Read both printed passages and underline the words that tell how long: for a long time, Finally, After a long time. Say aloud what each one tells a reader that the events alone do not. Then put the two passages in the order they happen and say the time word that proves your order.
Word preview: Finally, long
I wasn't in the pocket long. There was a hole in it. Uh-oh. Help! I bounced along, then rolled to a stop. No one noticed me for a long time. Hey, watch it! Finally, a little girl rescued me. I found a quarter. Thank you so much, miss.
Hello After a long time Bob's wife took out the laundry.
3. Retell three events in order, out loud (6 min)
Read the two printed passages, then retell them to a partner in order, starting each event with a time word of your own: First, Then, Soon, Finally. Your partner holds the event cards and lays one down each time you name an event. If two cards end up in the wrong order, read the printed lines again and fix it before you go on.
Word preview: Soon, instead
She took me into a candy store. I could buy a bunch of candy. Or I could donate this money to charity. The little girl didn't buy anything. She gave me away instead. Soon, a lady came to pick up the donations.
She gave me to her little boy. Ah, I already have this state. He almost added me to his state quarter collection. He put me into a piggy bank instead. Here comes another one. It's getting crowded in here. He is saving us for something.
4. Write the last two events with time words (4 min)
Read the two printed closing passages. Write two sentences telling what happened last, each one beginning with a time word from the retelling frame card. Read them to your partner, who checks that your two sentences are in the same order the book gives them.
Word preview: again
Please add this to my savings account. I was back in the bank again. Wee!
It sounds as if you had a great day. I wonder where I'll go tomorrow.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Circle the words that move the day forward (5 min)
Read the opening aloud and circle every word that tells when: Then, Next. Read it again with those words left out and say what breaks. Lay the event cards in the order the printed lines give.
Word preview: Then, Next
So, George, how was your day? I was under a lot of pressure at first. Ouch! We're in mint condition. I was stamped out at the US Mint. Then I fell into a bag. Let me out of here. We were all loaded into a truck. Where are they taking us? The driver took us to a Federal Reserve Bank. Next, we went to a local bank.
2. Retell three events in order, out loud (4 min)
Read the two printed passages, then retell them to a partner in order, beginning each event with First, Then, Soon or Finally. Your partner lays down one event card per event and stops you if the order slips.
Word preview: Soon, instead
She took me into a candy store. I could buy a bunch of candy. Or I could donate this money to charity. The little girl didn't buy anything. She gave me away instead. Soon, a lady came to pick up the donations.
She gave me to her little boy. Ah, I already have this state. He almost added me to his state quarter collection. He put me into a piggy bank instead. Here comes another one. It's getting crowded in here. He is saving us for something.

Three levels

Support: Use the opening passage from the first step and three event cards only. Circle Then and Next, then lay the three cards in order while saying the time word aloud as you put each one down. Leave the written retelling for the group chart.
At Grade: Work the opening passage and both passages in the third step. Circle the time words, lay the cards in order, and retell the three events aloud using First, Then and Finally from the frame card.
Extension: Using the third step's two passages, retell the events out of order on purpose and then have your partner fix them using the time words alone. Say which printed word made the fix possible, and which event could not have moved.

English learners

Sequence transfers: every language orders a story, and most mark it with words. The English words that do this job have to be learnt, and several of them — Then, Next, Soon, Finally — sit unstressed at the front of a sentence where a learner may hear them as noise. Rehearse the frame "First the coin ____. Then the coin ____." pointing at an event card for each blank. Invite students to retell the coin's day in their strongest language first, then use the English frame; the order is the thing being assessed, not the accent.

Materials

Printed passage strips
Event cards for the coin's day
Coloured pencils for underlining
Retelling frame card: First, Then, Soon, Finally
Lined writing slip
Word cards: Then, Next, Finally, long, Soon, instead, again

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

10. Money words at the back: reading and using a glossary Application · Using a glossary: entries, alphabetical order, and looking a word up

This book ends with a glossary, and it behaves like every glossary a second grader will meet: word, full stop, short meaning, entries in alphabetical order. Students split each printed entry into its two parts, write the first letters down an alphabet strip to prove the order, then use the glossary to settle two words the story itself uses — donate and charity — by swapping the glossary meaning into the story sentence and judging whether it still holds. They close by writing one new entry in the book's own pattern. No student computes a value; the work is knowing what a glossary is for and getting a word out of one.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Read a glossary line and find its two parts (5 min)
Read the printed glossary lines aloud with a partner. Every entry has two parts: the word, then what it means. Draw a line between the two parts of each entry with your pencil, so Bargain sits on one side and Something sold at a low price sits on the other. Say one entry aloud with the word and then the meaning.
Word preview: glossary, entry
Money words. Allowance. An amount of money given regularly, such as once a week. Bank. A business that stores and lends money. Bargain. Something sold at a low price. Barter. To trade goods or services directly without using money. Cash. Money in the form of coins or bills.
2. Prove the entries are in alphabetical order (5 min)
Read both printed sets of glossary lines and write the first letter of each word on your alphabet strip. Say the letters in order down the column: A, B, B, B, C, C, C, C, D. Tell your partner where a new word starting with E would have to go, and why a reader can find a word fast in a list built this way.
Word preview: alphabetical
Money words. Allowance. An amount of money given regularly, such as once a week. Bank. A business that stores and lends money. Bargain. Something sold at a low price. Barter. To trade goods or services directly without using money. Cash. Money in the form of coins or bills.
Charity. An organization that helps a cause such as homeless animals. Counterfeit. Worthless copy. Currency. Money. Dime. Ten cents. One-tenth of a dollar.
3. Use the glossary to settle a word from the story (6 min)
One partner reads the story line aloud; the other finds the matching entry on the glossary strip and reads the meaning. Do it for donate and for charity. Then say the story line again, swapping in the glossary meaning, so it becomes give this money to an organization that helps a cause. Decide together whether the swapped sentence still says the same thing.
Word preview: donate, charity
She took me into a candy store. I could buy a bunch of candy. Or I could donate this money to charity. The little girl didn't buy anything. She gave me away instead. Soon, a lady came to pick up the donations.
Charity. An organization that helps a cause such as homeless animals. Counterfeit. Worthless copy. Currency. Money. Dime. Ten cents. One-tenth of a dollar.
Donate. To give money goods or services to a charity. Earn. To get money by working for it.
4. Write the entry the book left out (4 min)
Read the printed glossary lines. Two of them, Save and Wage, show you the pattern: a word, a full stop, then a short meaning. Write one new entry for the word coin in exactly that pattern, and say where it would sit on the alphabet strip.
Word preview: save, wage
Save. To keep money for a particular purpose. Wage. Payment to a worker.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Read a glossary line and find its two parts (5 min)
Read the printed glossary lines aloud with a partner. Draw a line between the two parts of each entry: the word on one side, what it means on the other. Say one entry aloud, word first, then meaning.
Word preview: glossary, entry
Money words. Allowance. An amount of money given regularly, such as once a week. Bank. A business that stores and lends money. Bargain. Something sold at a low price. Barter. To trade goods or services directly without using money. Cash. Money in the form of coins or bills.
2. Use the glossary to settle a word from the story (4 min)
One partner reads the story line aloud; the other finds donate and charity on the glossary strip and reads the meaning. Say the story line again with the glossary meaning swapped in, and decide together whether it still says the same thing.
Word preview: donate, charity
She took me into a candy store. I could buy a bunch of candy. Or I could donate this money to charity. The little girl didn't buy anything. She gave me away instead. Soon, a lady came to pick up the donations.
Charity. An organization that helps a cause such as homeless animals. Counterfeit. Worthless copy. Currency. Money. Dime. Ten cents. One-tenth of a dollar.
Donate. To give money goods or services to a charity. Earn. To get money by working for it.

Three levels

Support: Use the first step's glossary passage only, and just three entries: Bank, Bargain, Barter. Draw the dividing line, then read each entry aloud as word, pause, meaning. Leave the alphabet proof for the group chart.
At Grade: Work the first step's glossary passage and the story-and-glossary passages in the third step. Split the entries, then look up donate and charity and read each meaning back into the story sentence.
Extension: Using the third step's three passages, argue whether the glossary's meaning of donate fully explains what the little girl does in the story. Point to the printed story line and the printed entry, and say what the entry leaves out.

English learners

A glossary transfers: bilingual dictionaries have the same word-then-meaning shape, and many learners use one daily. English alphabetical order is new to a learner whose first script is not Latin, as is the compressed entry style that drops the verb — Currency. Money. reads as two fragments, not a sentence. Rehearse the frame "____ means ____." reading straight off the strip. Invite students to give the meaning in their strongest language first and then read the English entry aloud; both go on the lookup sheet.

Materials

Printed passage strips
Coloured pencils for underlining
Alphabet order strip
Glossary lookup sheet
Lined writing slip
Word cards: glossary, entry, alphabetical, donate, charity, save, wage

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

11. Money doesn't grow on trees: reading a saying twice Concept · Sayings that do not mean what the words say

This book drops four everyday sayings into a plain narration, and a second grader who reads them word for word gets the wrong picture. Students read each printed saying aloud, draw or state the word-for-word version, then say what it actually means. They sort printed lines onto two mats — lines that mean exactly what they say and lines that mean something else — and defend one sort aloud. The trees line is the best evidence in the book, because the narration keeps the saying and then contradicts it on purpose. Nothing is added or compared numerically; the work is holding two meanings for one sentence.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Find the sentence that cannot be true word for word (5 min)
Read the printed line aloud. Money does not really grow on trees, and the book knows it — it says they say first. Draw a tree on your sticky note, then say to your partner what the saying really means. Then say what the book is joking about, since this store really is full of trees.
Word preview: saying, grow
They say money doesn't grow on trees, but it does in this store.
We drove to a store full of plants. How much is this tree? That one is $30. I helped buy new plants for her garden. I'll take all of these.
2. Say the plain-words version (5 min)
Read the two printed lines and put your finger on trash and on treasure. Nothing changed shape; the lady sold old things at the sale the second line calls bargains. Write the plain-words version on your slip: she sold things nobody wanted and got money for them. Read both versions aloud and say which one you would rather read in a book.
Word preview: trash, treasure
She turned her trash into treasure.
These are bargains.
3. Sort the sayings from the plain sentences (6 min)
Cut the strip into single printed lines and sort them onto two mats: lines that mean exactly what the words say, and lines that mean something else. Money makes the world go round goes on the something-else mat; the world does not spin because of coins. Say aloud why each line went where it went, and be ready to defend one of them to another pair.
Word preview: saying
Money makes the world go round.
Bob drove to his house. He washed his clothes and me too. Huh?
They say money doesn't grow on trees, but it does in this store.
4. Draw the words, then draw the meaning (4 min)
Pick one printed saying. Fold your paper in half. On the left draw exactly what the words say; on the right draw what the saying really means. Show a partner both halves and let them tell you which is which without being told.
Word preview: treasure
She turned her trash into treasure.
Money makes the world go round.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Find the sentence that cannot be true word for word (5 min)
Read the printed line aloud. Money does not really grow on trees, and the book knows it — it says they say first. Say what the saying means, then say what the book is joking about, since this store really is full of trees.
Word preview: saying, grow
They say money doesn't grow on trees, but it does in this store.
We drove to a store full of plants. How much is this tree? That one is $30. I helped buy new plants for her garden. I'll take all of these.
2. Sort the sayings from the plain sentences (4 min)
Cut the strip into single printed lines and sort them onto the two mats: lines that mean exactly what they say, and lines that mean something else. Say aloud why each line went where it went.
Word preview: saying
Money makes the world go round.
Bob drove to his house. He washed his clothes and me too. Huh?
They say money doesn't grow on trees, but it does in this store.

Three levels

Support: Use the first step's trees line only. Draw the word-for-word picture, then say the real meaning in one sentence to a partner. Leave the sorting mats for the group chart.
At Grade: Work the first step's trees line and the third step's three lines. Draw or say the word-for-word version, then sort all three onto the mats and give a reason for each.
Extension: Using the first step's two passages, explain why the narration says but it does in this store right after a saying that says the opposite. Point to both printed lines and say what the joke needs the reader to already know.

English learners

The idea that a phrase can mean something other than its words transfers strongly: every language a child brings has sayings, and many learners already juggle two sets. These particular English sayings have to be learnt whole — trash into treasure cannot be worked out from trash and treasure. Rehearse the frame "The words say ____, but it means ____." Invite students to offer a saying about money from their strongest language and say what its words say; put both on the sorting mat.

Materials

Printed passage strips
Sticky notes
Lined writing slip
Two sorting mats labelled says exactly this and means something else
Folded drawing paper
Word cards: saying, grow, trash, treasure

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

12. Before there was money: reading a problem-and-solution explanation Reasoning · How an informational section builds a problem-then-solution explanation

The back section is a clean problem-and-solution explanation: a question, a practice that came first, three problems with it, and the thing people found instead. Each problem sentence is followed by a two-line scene that shows the problem happening, which is the structure students are here to see. Students underline the opening question, chart each problem beside the printed line that proves it, find the single sentence where the explanation turns, and then retell the whole thing in three sentences using Before, But and So. No student calculates anything; the work is seeing how an explanation is built and saying it back whole.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Find the question the back section asks (5 min)
Read the printed lines aloud. The section opens with a question, Who needs money?, and everything after it is the answer. Underline the question, then underline the first sentence that starts answering it. Say to your partner what a writer gains by opening with a question instead of a fact.
Word preview: barter, problem
Who needs money? Before there was money, there was barter. People traded goods or services directly. I'll fix your cart if you'll give me that piglet. Okay. One problem with bartering is that you may not have what the other person wants. I'll trade you this grapefruit for your apple. I don't want grapefruit. Do you have any bananas?
2. Name each problem and find the little scene under it (5 min)
Read both printed passages. Each problem sentence is followed by a tiny scene of two people talking that shows the problem happening. Write each problem on your chart, then write the line from the scene that proves it. The bowling ball line proves the carrying problem.
Word preview: problem, example
Who needs money? Before there was money, there was barter. People traded goods or services directly. I'll fix your cart if you'll give me that piglet. Okay. One problem with bartering is that you may not have what the other person wants. I'll trade you this grapefruit for your apple. I don't want grapefruit. Do you have any bananas?
It can be difficult to carry and store the items you have to trade. Where are you going with that bowling ball? To the store to buy some crayons. It is hard to save up for the future without money. These potatoes will pay for your college education. Won't they rot before then?
3. Find the sentence that turns the problems into a solution (6 min)
Read the printed passage and find the one sentence where the problems stop and the answer starts. Underline it, then say aloud the two things people were looking for in something to use as money. Read the last three printed lines and tell your partner how each one answers a problem from your chart.
Word preview: durable, solution
People all over the world looked for something durable and easily carried to use for money. In the past, a variety of objects were used, including beads, stones, and salt. Metals such as copper, gold, and silver became popular and are still used today to make coins. These days, most money is in the form of paper bills.
4. Say the whole explanation back in three sentences (4 min)
Using your chart and the printed passage, tell a partner the whole explanation in three sentences: what people did before money, what went wrong, and what they found instead. Start with Before, then But, then So. Your partner listens with the chart in hand and says which of your three sentences is missing a detail from it.
Word preview: solution
People all over the world looked for something durable and easily carried to use for money. In the past, a variety of objects were used, including beads, stones, and salt. Metals such as copper, gold, and silver became popular and are still used today to make coins. These days, most money is in the form of paper bills.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Find the question the back section asks (5 min)
Read the printed lines aloud. The section opens with a question, Who needs money?, and everything after is the answer. Underline the question and the first sentence that answers it, then say what a writer gains by opening with a question.
Word preview: barter, problem
Who needs money? Before there was money, there was barter. People traded goods or services directly. I'll fix your cart if you'll give me that piglet. Okay. One problem with bartering is that you may not have what the other person wants. I'll trade you this grapefruit for your apple. I don't want grapefruit. Do you have any bananas?
2. Find the sentence that turns the problems into a solution (4 min)
Read the printed passage and find the sentence where the problems stop and the answer begins. Underline it, say the two things people wanted in something to use as money, and tell your partner how the last lines answer each problem.
Word preview: durable, solution
People all over the world looked for something durable and easily carried to use for money. In the past, a variety of objects were used, including beads, stones, and salt. Metals such as copper, gold, and silver became popular and are still used today to make coins. These days, most money is in the form of paper bills.

Three levels

Support: Use the first step's passage only. Underline the question, then find the one problem sentence in it and the two lines of talk under that problem. Say the problem aloud in your own words and stop there.
At Grade: Work the first step's passage and the third step's. Underline the question, chart two problems with the printed line that proves each, and name the sentence where the answer begins.
Extension: Using the third step's passage, say which of the charted problems the words durable and easily carried each answer, and which problem from the chart the sentence does not answer at all. Point to the printed line for each claim.

English learners

Problem-and-solution transfers: it is how explanations are built in most languages, and a learner who can tell you what went wrong and what fixed it already has the structure. The English signposting is what has to be taught, especially the bare problem noun in One problem with bartering is, and the compressed dialogue scenes that carry the evidence without saying whose problem it is. Rehearse the frame "The problem was ____. People found ____ instead." Invite students to give the problem in their strongest language first, then say the English frame with the chart in front of them.

Materials

Printed passage strips
Coloured pencils for underlining
Problem-and-example chart
Retelling frame card: Before, But, So
Word cards: barter, problem, example, durable, solution

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.