What does the Pip's Market Stall — Counting Coins & Making Change activity teach?

Pip's Market Stall — Counting Coins & Making Change is a free interactive activity for Grade 2, focused on Measurement & Data. Children play it right in the browser — no printing, login, or setup required.

Is Pip's Market Stall — Counting Coins & Making Change free to use?

Yes. Pip's Market Stall — Counting Coins & Making Change is completely free, with no signup and no paywall, on any tablet, laptop, or classroom whiteboard.

Which ages is this activity for?

It is designed for Grade 2 (Measurement & Data) and works well for whole-class, small-group, or independent practice.

Pip's Market Stall — Counting Coins & Making Change

Pay at Pip the otter's seaside market stall! Read each word problem, then pick real coins — penny, nickel, dime, quarter — and pay the exact price, count a pile, make change, or trade coins of equal value. The catch: the value isn't written on the coin, so you have to KNOW what each one is worth. A warm Grade 2 money game (and yes — the tiny dime is worth more than the bigger nickel!), aligned to Common Core 2.MD.C.8.

Grade 2·Measurement & Data·2.MD.C.8

About this activity

Pip the otter runs a seaside stall, and each round is a short word problem with real U.S. coins — penny, nickel, dime, and quarter: count a pile (two dimes and three pennies make 23¢), pay an exact price, make change when cheese costs 70¢ and you pay a dollar, or trade a quarter for smaller coins of equal value. It's a free Grade 2 money game that runs in the browser with no account.

The catch that makes it real money sense: the value is not printed on the coin, so a child has to know that a dime is worth 10¢ even though it is smaller than the 5¢ nickel. That breaks the natural habit of judging worth by size, and the variety of jobs — counting, paying exactly, making change, trading equal values — means children practice the meaning of each coin instead of one memorized routine. A scaffolded legend fades from full help to none across the rounds.

It is aligned to Common Core 2.MD.C.8 — solving word problems with dollars and cents using the symbols for the four coins. No timer, no score — just calm, playful practice.

What's inside this activity

Designed for Grade 2 learners (ages about 7–8)
Common Core strand: Measurement & Data
Aligned to Common Core standard 2.MD.C.8

How to play

Read Pip's word problem — count, pay exactly, make change, or trade.

Tap the coins you need from the purse to solve it.

Submit your answer and try again as needed — there is no timer and no score.

What your child practices

Know the value of a penny, nickel, dime, and quarter without it being written on the coin
Count a mixed pile of coins and pay an exact price
Make change and make the same amount more than one way
Trade a coin for smaller coins of equal value

Learning goals

Solve money word problems with pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters — the focus of Common Core 2.MD.C.8.

Understand that a coin's worth is not the same as its size, so a dime beats a nickel.

Build the coin sense children use to count money and make change in real life.

Frequently asked questions

What does the Pip's Market Stall — Counting Coins & Making Change activity teach?: Pip's Market Stall — Counting Coins & Making Change is a free interactive activity for Grade 2, focused on Measurement & Data. Children play it right in the browser — no printing, login, or setup required.
Is Pip's Market Stall — Counting Coins & Making Change free to use?: Yes. Pip's Market Stall — Counting Coins & Making Change is completely free, with no signup and no paywall, on any tablet, laptop, or classroom whiteboard.
Which ages is this activity for?: It is designed for Grade 2 (Measurement & Data) and works well for whole-class, small-group, or independent practice.

Practice this standard

See all 2.MD.C.8 activities