Chapter 12 — How Much Can We Spend?

Chapter 12 of the Class 1 Maths NCERT textbook (Joyful Mathematics), "How Much Can We Spend?", introduces young children to Indian coins and currency notes, and builds early money skills through toy-shop activities, making combinations of amounts, and a classroom shopping game.

• Identifying Coins and Notes — Children learn to recognise Indian coins of ₹1, ₹2, ₹5, and ₹10, and notes of ₹10, ₹20, ₹50, and ₹100. They practise writing the denomination of each coin and note they see.
• Buying from the Toy Seller — Through the story of Rahim Kaka the toy seller, children work out which toys they can buy for ₹10 or ₹20. They also figure out how much extra money is needed when they do not have quite enough to pay for a toy.
• Making Different Combinations for an Amount — Children fill in or draw coins and notes that together make a given amount such as ₹8, ₹13, ₹20, or ₹10. This shows that the same total can be reached using different combinations of currency.
• Classroom Shopping Game — In the "Let us Play" activity, children make their own paper coins and notes and play a shopping game where some act as shopkeepers and others as customers. They pay for items in different combinations to practise handling money.
• Saving Money and the Piggy Bank Project — The chapter ends with a discussion on why saving money is a good habit. As a project, children are encouraged to make their own gullak (piggy bank) at home using a spare box, with help from siblings or elders.

1. 01Indian coins come in denominations of ₹1, ₹2, ₹5, and ₹10.
2. 02Indian notes come in denominations of ₹10, ₹20, ₹50, and ₹100.
3. 03A ball that costs ₹20 can be paid for with four ₹5 coins or two ₹10 notes.
4. 04The same amount can be made using different combinations of coins and notes.
5. 05Children play a classroom shopping game using self-made paper money.
6. 06Saving money is discussed as a good habit, and children make their own gullak at home.
7. 07Children find how much extra money is needed when they cannot afford a toy.