Learn the Basics: Time and Money

Time is of the essence. Money makes the world go 'round. These well-known phrases emphasize the importance of these two necessities of life. However, for your young child, the abstract nature of time and money probably makes them a mystery. To make them easier to grasp, apply what he has already learned about numbers, measurement, and fractions to discussions of time and money.

Begin with global concepts and work toward more specific concepts. For example, children can understand yesterday, today, and tomorrow more easily than they can understand hours and minutes. Children can understand that money is used in exchange for goods and services before they can equate a quarter with twenty-five pennies. By strengthening his understanding of the more general and abstract concepts first, you can build a foundation for more advanced lessons.

 What You Need:

• Assorted coins and bills
• Piggy bank
• Clock

Activities to try at home:.

1. Discuss your child's daily routine with him each day. Ask questions such as, “What comes next? What comes before? What comes later?”
2. Talk about things that happened yesterday, things that happened today, and things that will happen tomorrow.
3. Show him a clock regularly and explain what time it is, first in terms of the "big hand" only and later on adding a discussion of the "little hand" on the clock. Discuss what events occur at different times of the day. For example, point out that he wakes up when the big hand is on the seven, or that he eats lunch when the big hand is pointed toward the 12.
4. Give your child a small allowance and a bank. Help him count the money every few days or whenever he adds or takes away money.
5. Encourage your child to sort coins and bills.

Vocabulary Builders: