Spending Saving Worksheet

Telling the difference between spending and saving is one of the first real money decisions a child ever makes, and this spending saving worksheet turns that decision into arithmetic. Every item hands the student a bank that already holds a few cents, a tag that reads save or spend, and a small pile of coins. When the tag says save, the coins are added to what is in the bank. When it says spend, the same coins are taken away. Counting is only half of the work here, because the child has to read the word first and then choose whether to add or subtract.

Every coin is drawn at its true United States mint size, so the dime really is the smallest coin on the page and the quarter really is the widest, and the penny keeps its copper colour while the nickel and dime stay silver. That matters more than it sounds: a student who only ever reads the words two nickels never learns to recognise a nickel. Print the sheet, hand out a pencil, and let students work down the page. Real coins on the desk make an excellent first pass for anyone who still needs to count by touch, and the answer key on the last page makes checking the work a two minute job.

What’s Included

• Four bank rows with a starting amount, a save or spend tag, and coins to count
• Two subtraction items that take a spent set of coins away from a saved set
• One story problem that saves first and then spends, so both steps appear together
• Coins drawn to real mint size, with the reeded edge on the dime and the quarter
• A full answer key on the last page, with the working shown for the story problem

This 2nd grade money worksheet helps in three ways. First, it separates the two skills a money problem really needs, recognising the coin and choosing the operation, and then puts them back together on one line. Second, it keeps the numbers small and believable, so a sticker costs a quarter and a bank holds about half a dollar, which is what keeps a word problem from turning into nonsense. Third, it builds the habit of reading the whole problem before picking up the pencil, because on this spending saving worksheet the same pile of coins can raise or lower the total depending on one word.

Try giving each student a small jar and a handful of real coins, then calling out save or spend and letting them act out a few rounds before the pencil work begins. A class store with prices under a dollar works well too, and so does a weekly chore chart where earnings are added on Friday. At home, let your child count the change from a real purchase and decide out loud whether it goes into the jar or back into a pocket.

Related Resources

• Counting Coins Worksheet
• Counting Money Word Problems Worksheet
• Snack Bar Money Worksheet
• Counting By Fives Song