Using LearnEnglish Kids - British Council


	What would you like to buy? Have you got enough money? See what happens when this boy goes shopping in the song 'Ten Shiny Coins'.

more tips

pocket money and pester power

Teachers can find ideas for using the topic of pocket money and young people on the teaching English website. The ideas are suitable for teachers of teenagers.

useful websites

Here are some websites that have useful information or activities about money and shopping.

BBC Schools. Read a shopping list and get the items as cheaply as possible.

Younger children can play a numbers game with Count Hoot the owl, or go Igloo Shopping, a game to practise money sums.

Smithsonian. Use words and numbers to make a special poster for your bedroom door.

Rainforest Maths. Activities using numbers in different ways. Including measuring things, looking at patterns, and counting money (using dollars and cents).

	using learnenglish kids with your child


	Money

Money is an important part of daily life, and we may expect our children to be able to deal with it in quite sophisticated ways. Children frequently relate to money in terms of what they can do with it, deciding which toys to buy, how much chocolate they can afford, or whether or not they have enough money for the latest computer game.

This topic touches on many elements of the school curriculum from simple arithmetic to different currencies used around the world, how, when and where we go shopping and what we buy. You'll find resources about money on LearnEnglish Kids on this page: http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-topics-money.htm

With these materials children will be able to:

			practise words related to numbers, money, and shopping
			use numbers and do money sums
			learn about different currencies used around the world

Activities are marked with a symbol on the topics webpage (http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-topics-money.htm) to indicate suggested age group and level. Look at these to help choose which activities to use with your child.

Younger children will enjoy the simple counting song 'Ten Shiny Coins' and the story, an exciting new Spycat adventure, called 'Ratty Robs a Bank'.

Older children may be interested in a quiz about money, its history, uses, and who earns the most. They can also learn about different currencies in use around the world.

Below you will find notes for an activity you can do with your child. On the left you'll see a list of links to resources about this topic on teaching websites and other external websites that you may find useful. Please note that the British Council is not responsible for the content of external websites.

SOMETHING YOU CAN DO WITH YOUR CHILD

In this series of activities children can practise the numbers one to ten in English. Children who can read and write simple sentences can follow up the song with a gap fill activity. You can plan a shopping trip together, encourage your child to think about the value of money and talk about things they would like to buy.

			Review numbers one to ten with your child. You can do this by simply counting together, or use rhymes (such as, '1,2,3,4,5, once I caught a fish alive. 6 ,7, 8, 9, 10. then I let it go again) to practise numbers.
			Listen to the song Ten Shiny Coins. Practise singing it together. You could then substitute the things the boy buys with things your child would like to buy.
			Here is an activity which has eight sentences from the song There is a word missing in each. The words are above the sentences. Use the mouse to put the words into place. Try not to help too much - your child might need to try different combinations. Find the activity here www.britishcouncil.org/kids-games-gapfill-money.htm When your child is happy with the words, click on 'submit' to see if they are right.
			Take ten coins in local currency, ask you child what they could buy with them alternatively you could print and cut out these money flashcards for a selection of notes and coins. Use these to play at shopping, you could use a range of food items from your kitchen, or pictures cut out of magazines of toys your child might like to buy.
			You could follow this up with an actual shopping trip, encourage your child to work out the prices in English.