Foreign Currency 'Trump Cards'

If your Y6 pupils are heading abroad soon, and want to take some spending money with them, here are some foreign currency cards you can use for some quick-fire mental maths challenges.

Here’s how you could use them:

• Print (double-sided) and cut out one set of four for every pair of pupils
• Give them 30 seconds to complete a series of mini challenges in pairs, such as:

• Arrange the currencies from ‘strongest’ (most valuable unit) to ‘weakest’ (least valuable unit)
• How much of each currency would you get for £10?
• Find the currency in which a loaf of break might cost ‘20’
• Find the currency in which a bottle of water might cost ‘100’
• Find the currency which has the same numbering on its coins as our currency (i.e. 0.01, 0.02, 0.05, 0.10, 0.20, 0.50, 1.00, 2.00)
• In which two countries would £20 be enough to buy something with ‘100’ written on the price tag?

If you’re looking at decimals and multiplying/dividing by 10 and 100, this could be the perfect way to apply the learning in an engaging way!

NOTE: the exchange rates shown are approximations of the real ones (which, of course, change every minute)