F. Financial Literacy · Making Change

Be the Shopkeeper: Giving and Checking Change

F1.1 A1About 40 minutes

Learning goals

I can solve change problems using four steps.
I can give change by counting up, using the fewest coins and bills.
I can check change by adding it to the price.
I can find the price when I know the money paid and the change.
I can be honest and kind when change is wrong.

Words to know

shopkeeper
A person who sells things and gives change.

fewest
The smallest number. The fewest coins for 30¢ are 2 coins: a quarter and a nickel.

check
Make sure an answer is right, often by solving it another way.

honest
Telling the truth and doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.

Let's get started!

It is a warm summer Saturday. Amira and her dad are having a yard sale, and Amira's little brother runs a lemonade stand beside it. Amira is the shopkeeper. She has a cash box with coins, loonies, toonies and $5 bills to give change.

Today you will be the shopkeeper too!

A yard sale with books, toy trucks and skates on tables, next to a wooden lemonade stand with a cash box. — A yard sale and lemonade stand like Amira's. Notice the cash box: the shopkeeper uses it to give each customer the right change. AI-generated image

Lemonade stand	Price	Yard sale	Price
Cookie	25¢	Book	$2
Lemonade	50¢	Toy truck	$3
Muffin	75¢	Board game	$5
		Skates	$8

Prices at Amira's lemonade stand and yard sale.

Four steps for solving problems

Understand. What do I know? What do I need to find?
Plan. Will I count up, use a fact, or draw? Should I estimate first?
Do it. Find the answer.
Look back. Check: does price + change = money paid? Does my answer make sense?

Worked example

Example 1: Count up as you give change

A customer buys a muffin (75¢) and pays with a loonie. How does Amira give the change?

Amira says the price: "75."
She puts a quarter in the customer's hand and says, "100. That's one dollar."
Look back: 75 + 25 = 100. ✔

The change is 25¢, one quarter.

Giving the fewest coins

Shopkeepers like to give the fewest coins they can. Here is how:

Use the biggest coin or bill that is not more than the change you still need to give.
Take that away from the change you still need.
Repeat until there is nothing left.

For 40¢: a quarter (15¢ left), then a dime (5¢ left), then a nickel. 3 coins.

The fewest coins for 40¢: a quarter, a dime and a nickel. Count on: 25, 35, 40.

Worked example

Example 2: Find the price

A customer paid with a $10 bill and got back a toonie and a loonie. What did the customer buy?

Understand: The change is $2 + $1 = $3. I need the price.
Plan: price + change = money paid, so price + $3 = $10.
Do it: 7 + 3 = 10, so the price is $7.
Look back: Hmm, nothing at the yard sale costs $7. Maybe the customer bought two things. The book ($2) and the board game ($5) make $7! ✔

The customer spent $7: a book and a board game.

Worked example

Example 3: Checking change

Amira's friend helps at the stand. A customer buys skates ($8) with a $10 bill. The helper gives back a toonie and a loonie. Is that right?

The change given is $2 + $1 = $3.
Check: $8 + $3 = $11. That is not $10.
The right change is $2, because $8 + $2 = $10.

No. The helper gave $1 too much. The change should be $2 (one toonie).

Count up from the price of the skates. The toonie takes $8 to $10, the money paid. The extra loonie goes past $10, so it is $1 too much.

Being honest and kind

If a shopkeeper gives you too much change, the honest thing to do is to tell them and give back the extra. If they give you too little, say kindly, "I think my change is wrong. Can we count it together?"

Everyone makes mistakes. Being honest and kind helps everyone trust each other.

Worked example

Example 4: Which money should I use?

Theo wants the toy truck ($3). He has a $5 bill and a $10 bill. Which should he use?

Both bills are enough, because $5 and $10 are both more than $3.
With the $5 bill, his change is $2 (one toonie).
With the $10 bill, his change is $7 (for example, a $5 bill and a toonie).
Using the $5 bill means fewer coins and bills to carry, and he keeps his $10 bill.

Either works. Paying with the $5 bill gives $2 change and is simpler.

Shopkeeper's record

Real shopkeepers keep a record of their sales. A table with the columns Item, Price, Paid, Change and Check helps you catch mistakes. In the Check column, always add: price + change = paid.

Item	Price	Paid	Change	Check
Muffin	75¢	$1 (100¢)	25¢	75 + 25 = 100 ✔
Lemonade	50¢	$1 (100¢)	50¢	50 + 50 = 100 ✔
Toy truck	$3	$5	$2	3 + 2 = 5 ✔
Skates	$8	$10	$2	8 + 2 = 10 ✔

Amira's sales record.

Just for fun

What is full of change but never buys anything?

A cash box!

Hands-on activity

Run your own stand

You need: play money (paper bills, coins), a small box for a cash box, paper and a pencil, and a few things to "sell".

With a grown-up, set prices: some under $1 (ending in 0 or 5) and some in whole dollars up to $9.
Put coins, loonies, toonies and $5 bills in your cash box.
Your grown-up is the customer. They pay with a loonie, a $5 bill or a $10 bill.
Give the change by counting up out loud, using the fewest coins and bills you can.
Fill in a sales record with columns: Item, Price, Paid, Change, Check.
Sometimes your grown-up may give you the wrong change on purpose. Can you catch it and kindly explain?

If you want to make real lemonade, ask a grown-up to do any cutting with a knife.

Your turn

A customer buys lemonade (50¢) with a loonie. What change do you give?

A customer buys a board game ($5) with a $10 bill. What change do you give?

A customer paid with a loonie and got 3 quarters back. What did they buy?

A customer buys a toy truck ($3) with a $5 bill. Give the change with the fewest coins.

A customer buys a book ($2) with a $10 bill. The helper gives back a $5 bill and a loonie. Is that right?

What are the fewest coins for 35¢ in change?

A customer buys lemonade and a cookie with a loonie. What change do you give?

More practice: warm-up

A muffin (75¢) paid with a loonie. What is the change?

Skates ($8) paid with a $10 bill. What is the change?

What is the fewest number of coins for 10¢?

What are the fewest coins for 30¢?

A customer pays with a $5 bill and gets no change. What was the price?

More practice: on your own

A customer pays with a $10 bill and gets $4 back. What was the price?

What are the fewest coins for 65¢?

A customer buys a toy truck and a book with a $10 bill. What is the change?

A customer buys a cookie (25¢) with a loonie. The helper gives back 2 quarters and 2 dimes. Is that right?

Kai has a $5 bill and a $10 bill. He wants the skates ($8). Which bill must he use? What is his change?

Challenge

The cash box has only dimes and nickels left. Give 35¢ in change with the fewest coins.

Zara buys 2 different things at the yard sale with a $10 bill. She gets $2 back. What did she buy?

One customer buys a muffin with a loonie. The next customer buys a cookie with a loonie. How much change did Amira give in all?

Check your understanding

Quiz

A muffin costs 75¢. A customer pays with a loonie. Which coin is the change?

Which shows the fewest coins for 40¢?

A customer paid with a $10 bill and got $3 back. What was the price?

A cashier gives you too much change by mistake. What should you do?

Skates cost $8. A customer pays $10 and gets $2 back. Which number sentence checks the change?

What should you do first when you solve a change problem?

For parents and teachers

What your child is learning: to apply F1.1 (calculating change for simple cash transactions) in problem situations: giving change by counting up, using the fewest coins and bills, checking change with price + change = amount paid, and working backwards to find a price. The lesson weaves in a problem-solving routine and social-emotional skills such as honesty, staying calm and communicating kindly when something is wrong (A1).

Common difficulties:

Not using the biggest coin first when making change with the fewest coins. Ask, "What is the biggest coin that fits?"
Working backwards. When the change is given and the price is missing, use a part-part-whole idea: "Price plus change makes the money paid."
Thinking a wrong-change problem is a trick. Show that checking is a normal, useful habit.

How to help: Role-play a store where you deliberately make a change mistake now and then and let your child catch it. If you make real lemonade together, a grown-up should handle any knife.