lesson
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Imagine you want a shiny sticker that costs 10¢, but you do not have a 10¢ dime in your pocket. Can you still buy it?
Yes! You can make the exact same amount of money by grouping different coins together.
Meet the Coins
Before swapping coins, let's check what each coin is worth. A penny is worth 1¢, a nickel is 5¢, a dime is 10¢, and a quarter is 25¢.
📊Interactive diagram
Can two nickels really buy the same thing as one dime?
Different Ways to Make 10¢
Because one nickel is 5¢, counting by fives gives: 5¢+5¢=10¢. That means 2 nickels have the same value as 1 dime!
You can also use 10 single pennies, or mix 1 nickel with 5 pennies to make that same 10¢.
📊Interactive diagram
What happens when you need to make an even bigger amount, like 25¢?
Making 25¢ with Coins
One quarter is worth 25¢ all by itself. But you can also build 25¢ by counting by tens and fives: 2 dimes and 1 nickel (10¢+10¢+5¢=25¢).