Money • Topic 1 of 7

Indian Currency

Indian money comes in two forms that children meet every day: coins and notes. The coins in regular use are 1 rupee, 2 rupees, 5 rupees, 10 rupees and 20 rupees, and older 50-paise coins still turn up in some textbooks. Banknotes are issued in 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500 and 2000 rupees. The rupee is the unit of currency, written with the symbol Rs (or the official rupee sign), and the paisa is the smaller unit. The one rule that governs everything else is that one rupee equals one hundred paise, just as one metre equals one hundred centimetres. At the primary level a teacher usually introduces money with play notes and real coins so children can handle them, sort them by value, and learn that a single ten-rupee note is worth the same as ten one-rupee coins or two five-rupee coins. That idea of equal value in different forms is the foundation for making change later. A common classroom activity is asking children to make a given amount, say Rs 18, in as many ways as they can using the available coins and notes, which quietly builds number sense and addition at the same time.

✅ Solved examples

1. How many paise make one rupee?
One rupee = 100 paise. This is the basic equivalence used in every money sum.
2. Which of these is a coin in regular use in India: a 1-rupee coin or a 100-rupee coin?
The 1-rupee coin. The 100-rupee value is issued as a note, not a regular circulation coin.
3. A child wants to make Rs 10 using only 2-rupee coins. How many coins does she need?
Rs 10 divided by Rs 2 = 5 coins. Five 2-rupee coins make ten rupees.
4. Ravi has one 5-rupee coin and three 2-rupee coins. How much money does he have?
Rs 5 + (3 x Rs 2) = Rs 5 + Rs 6 = Rs 11.

✏️ Practice — try these, take hints as needed

1. Name two denominations that exist as both coins are not, but as notes only.
Think of the higher values.
100 and above are printed, not minted for circulation.
Notes such as 100, 200, 500 and 2000 rupees (200 and 2000 exist only as notes)
2. How many 5-rupee coins are equal to one 20-rupee note?
Divide 20 by 5.
Four 5-rupee coins
3. A purse holds two 10-rupee notes and one 5-rupee coin. What is the total amount?
Add the notes first, then the coin.
20 + 5.
Rs 25
4. In how many ways can Rs 4 be made using 1-rupee and 2-rupee coins?
List combinations: all ones, mixes, all twos.
Four 1s; two 1s and one 2; two 2s.
Three ways

📝 Topic test — 8 questions

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