We happen to have a jar we keep change in and we happened to get a couple of piggy banks as baby gifts ages ago. Until Bear showed an interest in the piggies on his shelf, I'd nearly forgotten we had them.
Since Bear has issues with weak grip, focus and impulsivity, these are the activities I came up with...
- digging hands through the change
- scooping & pouring the change
- sorting change into colors and sizes
- feeling/discussing the differences (e.g. smooth vs. ridged edges)
- putting change into the banks (endless options to challenge them, based on ability)
I tried to have him put the "brown" change into one bank and the silver change into another, but he just wasn't having it. When he's older I plan to have him sort by size, denomination, etc.
I decided to be happy that he was happy putting the change into the piggies at will. Who knows, maybe it helped work on his processing issues (some days he can't make a simple decision to save his life).
For what it's worth, he liked it enough that now he asks to play with coins every time he notices the piggies. Challenge now is saving up enough change to make it worthwhile!
Side note: If you don't have a piggy bank you can cut a slit in the top of an empty plastic food container to put the coins in (think round plastic bowls with lids like from cottage cheese). I keep one of these impromptu banks by the washer for the "tips" that fall out of my husband's pockets.
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