Monster Money
By Grace Maccarone
Illustrated by Marge Hartelius

Good Morning! Good Morning! Ten cents for a pet, a monster's best friend. Which one will you get? Ten pennies buy a frog. Ten pennies buy a slug. Five pennies and one nickel buy a bug. Two nickels buy a fly. Two nickels buy a flea. One nickel and five pennies buy a bee. One dime buys a beetle. One dime buys a bat. Five pennies and one nickel buy a rat. Ten cents buy a pet, a monster's best friend. Take your pet home because this is the end!

Critical Thinking Question
Retelling the Story. There are lots of pets to buy in the Monster Pet Store. Think about the short summary again. Now, think of several monsters you would like to buy in a Monster Pet Store and how much they would cost and write your version of the story. For each monster, count the coins you would need.

(Help: 1 Penny = 1 cent; 1 Nickel = 5 cent; 1 Dime = 10 cent)

Follow-up
Now that you have written your own creative story of Monster Money, try answering these questions:
1. How much money are the pennies worth?
2. How much money are the nickels worth?
3. How much money are the dimes worth?