Counting Coins and Bills

Every coin has a name and a special value. The penny is easy to spot because it is brown (copper) and worth $1c$. The nickel is silver-colored, thick, and worth $5c$. The dime is the smallest coin, but don't let its size fool you—it is worth $10c$! Finally, the quarter is the biggest of these four and is worth $25c$. When we talk about money, we use the cent symbol ($c$) for small amounts and the dollar sign (\$) for larger amounts like a whole dollar: \$1.00.

To count money fast, we use skip counting. If you have a pile of nickels, you count by $5s$: $5, 10, 15, 20$. If you have dimes, you count by $10s$: $10, 20, 30, 40$. When you have different coins, always start with the largest value first. It is much easier to start at $25$ and add smaller numbers than to start at $1$ and try to add $25$ later!

When you collect enough coins, they turn into a dollar. It takes exactly $100c$ to make $\$1.00$. You can reach this goal in many ways. For example, since a quarter is$25c$, you can count by$25s$to reach a dollar:$25, 50, 75, 100$. That means **4 quarters** equal one dollar! We write one dollar as$\$1.00$. The dot (decimal point) separates the dollars from the cents.