Dollar Bills and Paper Money

For Elementary Students

What are Dollar Bills?

Dollar bills are paper money used in the United States. Unlike coins, bills are made of paper (actually a special fabric blend).

Think about it like this: Coins are for small amounts. Bills are for bigger amounts!

Common Dollar Bills

$1 Bill (One Dollar)

What it looks like: Green, has George Washington's face

Value: $1.00 = 100 cents

Also written as: 1 dollar, $1

Equals:

• 4 quarters
• 10 dimes
• 20 nickels
• 100 pennies

$5 Bill (Five Dollars)

What it looks like: Green, has Abraham Lincoln's face

Value: $5.00

Equals:

• 5 one-dollar bills
• 20 quarters
• 50 dimes

$10 Bill (Ten Dollars)

What it looks like: Green, has Alexander Hamilton's face

Value: $10.00

Equals:

• 10 one-dollar bills
• 2 five-dollar bills

$20 Bill (Twenty Dollars)

What it looks like: Green, has Andrew Jackson's face

Value: $20.00

Equals:

• 20 one-dollar bills
• 4 five-dollar bills
• 2 ten-dollar bills

Tip: The $20 bill is very common. Many ATMs give you $20 bills!

Other Bills (Less Common)

• $50 bill — has Ulysses S. Grant
• $100 bill — has Benjamin Franklin

You probably won't use these often as a kid, but they exist!

Counting Bills

Example: You have 2 ten-dollar bills and 3 one-dollar bills. How much money?

Step 1: Count the larger bills first $10 + $10 = $20

Step 2: Add the smaller bills $20 + $1 + $1 + $1 = $23

Total: $23

Combining Bills and Coins

Example: You have 1 five-dollar bill, 2 quarters, and 1 dime.

Step 1: Start with bills $5.00

Step 2: Add coins 2 quarters = 50¢ = $0.50 1 dime = 10¢ = $0.10

Step 3: Add everything $5.00 + $0.50 + $0.10 = $5.60

Total: $5.60

For Junior High Students

Writing Money Amounts

There are different ways to write dollar amounts:

Tip: The decimal point separates dollars from cents. Everything after the decimal is cents.

Making Amounts with Fewest Bills

Problem: You need to pay $47. What's the fewest number of bills to use?

Strategy: Use the largest bills possible.

• 2 twenty-dollar bills = $40
• 1 five-dollar bill = $5
• 2 one-dollar bills = $2
• Total: 2 + 1 + 2 = 5 bills

Equivalencies

Knowing how bills relate helps you make quick substitutions:

Counting Mixed Denominations

Example: Count this money:

• 1 twenty-dollar bill
• 2 five-dollar bills
• 3 one-dollar bills
• 3 quarters
• 2 dimes

Step 1: Count bills (largest to smallest) $20 + $5 + $5 + $1 + $1 + $1 = $32

Step 2: Count coins 3 quarters = 75¢ 2 dimes = 20¢ 75¢ + 20¢ = 95¢ = $0.95

Step 3: Combine $32 + $0.95 = $32.95

Total: $32.95

Converting Between Bills

Example: You have 8 five-dollar bills. How many twenty-dollar bills could you get?

8 × $5 = $40

$40 ÷ $20 = 2 twenty-dollar bills

Example: You have 1 fifty-dollar bill. How many ten-dollar bills is that?

$50 ÷ $10 = 5 ten-dollar bills

Real-Life Situations

Paying: "That will be $12.50." You hand over 1 ten, 1 five. Too much! You'll get change.

Saving: "I saved 15 one-dollar bills. That's $15, which is the same as 1 ten and 1 five!"

Shopping: "I have $20. Can I afford something that costs $18.75?" (Yes, with $1.25 left over.)

Money Safety

Important tips:

• Don't carry large amounts of cash
• Keep money in a safe place (wallet, purse, bank)
• Check your change when buying something
• Never share how much money you have with strangers

Practice