Coin feely bag: a 15-minute Pre-K money activity
What it is: a Pre-K money game where students reach into a cloth bag, feel one coin without looking and decide whether its edge is smooth or bumpy. It builds the names of coins through touch: the dime and the quarter have tiny ridges on the edge, while the penny and the nickel are smooth.
Time: about 15 minutes. Grade: Pre-K (ages 4 to 5).
Materials: a cloth bag or a clean sock, 2 quarters, 2 dimes, 2 nickels and 2 pennies, and a tray with one of each coin to look at.
- Show the tray. Name each coin and let students run a fingertip around its edge. Say: "This one is bumpy. This one is smooth."
- Put the 8 coins in the bag. One student reaches in, picks one coin and keeps it inside the bag.
- Ask: "Is it smooth or bumpy? Is it big or little?" The student answers before pulling it out.
- Pull it out and match it to the tray. The class says its name together.
- Add a clue round: say "Find a big, bumpy coin," and the student searches by touch for a quarter.
- To finish, count the coins back into the bag together, from 1 to 8.
Safety: coins are a choking hazard. Use them only with an adult at the table, count them in and out, and keep them away from younger siblings. Wash hands afterward.
Differentiation: start with only quarters and pennies (big and bumpy, small and smooth) for students who are new to coins. Students who are ready can find all four coins by touch with eyes closed. English learners can answer with a gesture first: a flat hand for smooth, wiggling fingers for bumpy.
Quick check: hand a student a dime and a nickel. Ask which one is bumpy.
Save this activity to your library so it is ready when you need it.
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About this resource
- Shared by
- @UpOnlyLearning · Curriculum team
- Posted
- Oct 31, 2026
- Type
- Lesson plan
- Grade
- Grades K–2
- Subject
- Math, Life skills & money
- Language
- English
- License
- Free for classroom, co-op and tutoring use. Please don't resell.