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Coins

Coins

We handle coins all the time, but how often do we stop to look at them? They are different sizes, shapes and weights. They have pictures and emblems on them, a date, a value and other writing. Perhaps you have some coins from other countries left over from holidays abroad. Here are some fun activities for all the family to enjoy.

Activity 1 – Coin rubbings

You will need:-

  • A selection of coins
  • Paper or old paper envelopes
  • Wax crayons, coloured pencils or ‘lead’ pencil

Place a coin under the paper and hold firmly in place. Rub over the paper where the coin is, with a wax crayon. Don’t forget to do both sides of the coins. Use different coloured crayons for different coins if you like, to make it look more colourful. Have a close look at the details of the coins that the wax crayon has picked up.

Activity 2 – Shove the Coin

Using a smooth (unscratchable) table, worktop or floor, shove a coin forwards with the palm of your hand and have a competition to see who can push to coin the furthest.

Activity 3 – Clean Coins

Clean some coins with a household and/or metal cleaner. Then try dropping some coins in a cup of fizzy drink and see how clean they are when they come back out.

Activity 4 – Drawing with Coins as templates

Draw around a coin and turn your circle or hexagon etc into a drawing of something else by adding extra features. Or draw lots of circles and make a pattern to colour in.

Activity 5 – Coin Games

See who can:-

  • Walk, carrying a coin between their knees
  • Walk, balancing a coin on the fronts of shoes, on the nose, on the forehead and on the top of the head
  • Walk along with two people carrying a coin between their index fingers.

Activity 6 – Spin the coin

On a hard surface, stand a round coin on its edge. Place your thumb on one side of the coin and your forefinger on the other and spin the coin. See how long your coin keeps spinning and see which coins spin the best.

Activity 7 – Identifying Coins

Each coin is different so that blind people can identify coins just by feeling them. See how well you can identify coins without looking at them.

You will need:-

  • a selection of different coins
  • some coloured non-see through plastic, a black bin bag is ideal
  • sticky tape
  • little pieces of paper (optional)

Make a little pocket for each coin out of a cut piece of black bin bag material, with just one layer of plastic on either side of the coin. Seal the top and sides with a strip of sticky tape. (You may wish to put a number or code on each sealed coin and keep a record of which coin corresponds to which number or code.)

Feel through the bag to try to identify the coin by it’s size and shape.

Alternatively, just wear a blindfold and try to identify the different coins.

The Yeti

The Yeti

The ‘Yeti’ or ‘Abominable Snowman’ is part of the Sherpa people’s legends and history. The Yeti is rumoured to be large with white or grey long fur with enormous feet and big sharp teeth. In 1951, footprints claimed to be of the Yeti, this character of Himalayan folklore, were discovered and photographed on Mount Everest.

Activity 1 – A day in the life of a Yeti

Think about what it might be like to be a Yeti. Act out it’s activities in a typical day. First it might wake up, shiver a bit and jump around to keep warm. Then it might dig in the snow to find it’s breakfast and slide on it’s bottom down a mountain side, play some games, hunt for its lunch and hide from some people going past. What else can you think of?

Activity 2 – Hunt the Yeti

You will need a supply of Yeti footprints, ideally about 30cm by 20cm. First make a template. (You could start by drawing around a large shoe and then adding toes.)

Then draw round the template several times onto card from a cardboard box or cereal packet and cut them out carefully. Depending on the age/ability of the child, either the adult or the supervised child can do this.

Next, set up a treasure hunt. Write a clue on each cardboard footprint that will tell the child where the next one is. eg ‘on four legs, a bottom and a back (chair), we plump these up (cushions), we draw these in the evening (curtains). Ensure there is a suitable ‘Yeti’ at the end of the trail. It could be a teddy bear or treat. Hide the footprints in the relevant places and let the Yeti Hunt begin. To add extra interest you could include tasks which need to be performed eg, do 5 star jumps, recite a poem, count from 10 backwards.

Activity 3 – Make a Jumping Yeti

You will need:-

  • A piece of thick card 20cm long
  • White wool
  • Card feet (5cm long versions of the footprints in Activity 2)
  • Adhesive
  • 40cm Sheering elastic
  • Bamboo cane, skewer or a stick
  • Stick on eyes (googly or made of paper)

Wind the wool loosely around the card until it is quite thick (see picture)

Slide the wool off the card and wind and tie a piece of wool around, a quarter of the way down to form a neck. Then wind and tie a piece of wool around the centre, to form a waist. Cut through the bunched wool at both ends (top of head and at the feet end) to make a rough pom-pom. Attach a length of sheering elastic to the wool used to pull in the neck and fix the other end to the bamboo cane. Glue the card feet and eyes in the appropriate place.

Activity 4 – Play Yeti Footsteps

With the large yeti footprints from activity 2, move across the floor, using the footprints as stepping stones.

Additionally, the ‘hunter’ (adult/brother/sister) can be facing the wall with the yeti creeping up behind them using one pair of yeti footprints as stepping stones. When the hunter turns around, the yeti must freeze so as not to be seen.