Working with Money
About this app
A play shop with a real purse: prices are laid exactly with SVG coins and notes from 1 cent to 20 €, and a shopping list with stars guides the game. Change is worked out by adding on — the hops from €3.20 up to €5 become visible on a jump line. In free-play mode the child collects different ways of laying the same amount, and the compare duel of 5 × 1 cent versus 1 × 1 € refutes the misconception that many coins automatically mean much money. Decimal notation is read along gently: €3.20 = 3 euros and 20 cents.
With explain mode: an AI tutor walks you through the app, points out what matters in the scene and answers your questions.
Why money is tricky
Working with money ties numbers to a quantity children meet every day. They need to recognise coins and notes, make the same amount in different ways and read decimal prices: €3.20 means 3 euros and 20 cents, and 100 cents make one euro. Change is usually found by counting up from the price to the amount paid. A common misconception is that more coins means more money, because children count pieces instead of values.
What the app shows
A small shop with a wallet and a counter. In “Shopping” mode the child works through a shopping list, pays the exact price or lays out the change; the counting-up steps, for example from €3.20 to €4 and then to €5, appear on a jump line. “Free play” collects different ways to make one amount. “Compare” puts two piles of money side by side, such as one euro against five cents.
Ideas for home and class
Ask your child to make an amount, then ask for a second way with different coins. Before a comparison, ask which side holds more money: the one with more coins or the one with the bigger value? When giving change, say the jumps out loud together. Prices can be read aloud by the app, so children who are still learning to read can join in.
Frequently asked questions
- How do children learn to work out change?
- The easiest way is counting up. Start at the price and add convenient steps until you reach the amount paid, first to the next whole euro, then on. For a €3.20 item paid with a €5 note that is 80 cents to €4 and €1 to €5, so €1.80 change.
- Why do children think more coins means more money?
- Young children often judge a pile of money by the number of pieces, not by the value printed on them. Comparing five 1-cent coins with a single 1-euro coin makes the difference obvious: 5 cents against 100 cents. Sorting coins by value and counting from the largest helps.
- How should I teach euro and cent notation?
- Explain that the decimal point (in German a comma) separates euros from cents and that cents always take two digits. €3.20 is 3 euros and 20 cents, €3.02 is 3 euros and 2 cents. Laying out real coins next to the written price makes the link clear.
- What can my child practise in this money app?
- Paying exact amounts, laying out change, making one amount in several ways and comparing two amounts. All euro coins from 1 cent to €2 and notes up to €20 are included, and completed shopping lists earn stars.
Subject: Elementary · Maths
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