Coins are a great manipulative to use for place value. £1, 10p and 1p coins can represent the hundreds, tens and ones when thinking about pence, or can represent ones, tenths and hundredths when thinking about pounds. Whenever I use coins, I set them out in pots according to their place value.

Coins are also great for practising counting in 2s, 5s and 10s, then applying this to counting in 20s and 50s. They can also be used to practise multiplication and division facts for the 2, 5 and 10x tables.

Plastic coins can be easily bought from toy shops or online, but using real coins is a much better option. Collect as many 1p and 10p coins as possible, with a handful of 2p, 5p, 20p and 50p coins, as well as a £1 and £2 coin. Excitement will really increase if you pull out a £5 note!

Online interactive coins

• Games which use coins:
• All or nothing
• Largest number
• Make the number