Coin collecting is a popular hobby for people of all ages. It is a rewarding way to learn about history by assembling coins and currency that were used in important events in American and world history. The hobby dates back thousands of years, when the wealthy and royalty assembled collections.
Some people collect coins by type, assembling examples of all the different designs produced over time. Others prefer to collect a single series, accumulating all the dates and mint marks of one type of coin. Still other collectors focus on a specific subject, such as military service members or American Presidents. The Boy Scouts of America has a merit badge that encourages coin collecting as a way to learn about history and the nation.
The coins in the image above are not worth anything to a serious collector. They are made by hollowing out a genuine coin and fitting another into the hole. Then they are silver-plated and sold for use in magic tricks or for pranks. The real value is the knowledge you gain about the coin’s origin and history by holding it in your hand.
This quiz uses questions from PCGS CoinFacts, the most extensive coin encyclopedia available online. Students who answer the questions correctly earn coins for their Studies Weekly Online account. The number of coins earned is based on the tiered amount of time that the vocabulary review takes to complete. Teachers can manually add additional coins to a student’s account (see the How to Add Coins article for details). Article comprehension and Explore More media questions are automatically graded and award coins based on the number of correct answers.