First grade students at Iola-Scandinavia Elementary School recently had a chance to learn about coins and paper money from all over the globe.
Scott Tappa, publisher of the coin and paper money group at Krause Publications in Iola, visited Kristen Bertsch’s first grade class Oct. 21. He talked with students about why people use and collect coins. The students got first-hand looks at common coins like Lincoln cents and America the Beautiful quarters, and harder-to-find coins like an Eisenhower dollar and Chinese panda silver coin.
Tappa encouraged the children to begin collecting coins by giving them each their own coin collection. All students received a variety of coins and currency, including coins from Uruguay and Slovenia and paper money from Brazil and Peru.
They also received Lincoln Cents coin folders and four pennies to get them started filling the folders. Any student who properly fills all 108 holes in the folder with cents before the end of the school year will win a special prize.
“Spending time talking with the kids about coins was so much fun,” Tappa said. “They were all eager to talk about their experiences saving and spending coins, as well as with certain collectible coins that they or their parents have accumulated. There was also a lot of enthusiasm for filling their folders with pennies – we can’t wait to see what they come up with!”
For more information about using coins as an educational tool, visit www.shopnumismaster.com or e-mail [email protected].