The Coin Classroom offers information for budding collectors on coin making and collecting, as well as detailed plans for classroom teachers to provide in-school or online instruction.
The Mint’s education content, including teacher lesson plans, are located online on the Coin Classroom link at https://www.usmint.gov/learn/kids. Materials for grades kindergarten through six are listed under the Resources tab. However, the materials can be customized to suit any school age.
The expanded introduction section clarifies content and focuses the Coin Classroom on the Mint’s mission and circulating coins production and distribution. To help kids understand key concepts like coin composition, finishes, symbols, and more, the Mint has added detailed graphics to existing imagery and introduced new ones.
A section devoted to “Life of a Coin”, provides additional information about the journey from design to production to distribution, and finally retirement from commerce. This section explains the design process and details parts of a coin, as well as coin metal composition.
The new educational resources division provides lesson plans for adults that teach history and the Mint’s work.
This section is dedicated to circulating coins and shows six denominations currently produced at the Denver Mints with a circulation quality finish: Lincoln cent, Jefferson 5-cent coin and Roosevelt dime.
Although the cent is identified as a penny, the coin is legislated to be a cent. This information is also detailed on the reverse of the coin.
The quarter dollar’s obverse design illustrates John Flanagan’s portrait, Washington Crossing the Delaware. It was reduced in 1999 to support the State quarter dollars program. It will continue through 2021’s end of America’s Beautiful Quarters Program. The 2021 second quarter-dollar — Washington Crossing Delaware — Flanagan has restored Washington’s original portrait as it appeared on the quarter-dollar from 1932 to 1998. This will be used in 2021. The 2022 year will see the use of a new portrait, based on a submission from Laura Gardin Fraser in 1932.
There are 21 educational videos linked to Coin Classroom. More videos can be found on the Mint’s YouTube channel.
According to the Mint, “The U.S. Mint Coin Classroom” still offers free online games like Coin Stamper, Counting With Coins and Gold Rush. Some games teach probability and counting. Some games are fun and engage with information about the Mint and coin programs.
