Starting a coin collection can be an awesome way to learn about money, how to manage it, and how to invest! It’s possible to start a collection using change leftover from cash purchases at the grocery store or out of the cupholder in your parents’ car.
Sometimes, it can be tough to know where to start, though. Check out these fun book recommendations to learn about coin collecting! And make sure to read our coin collecting for kids guide too.
Coin Collecting for Kids by Steve Otfinoski
Skills Learned From This Guide
- Basics of coin investing
- How to figure out which coins could be valuable to hold onto for the long term
- The difference between money, coinage, and currency
- Historical meanings attached to pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters, and specialty dollar coins
Intended Age Group
Youth, ages 8-12, is suggested by Amazon for independent reading, but children as young as 3 enjoy this book with an adult’s help.
About Coin Collecting for Kids
This book has slots to hold up to 150+ coins, including the Presidential $1 coins, the 50 State Quarter series, Westward Journey nickel series, and Lincoln Bi-Centennial one-cent coins! This illustrated book takes kids on a journey into the world of coin collecting and introduces you to a mint where coins are produced.
About the Author
Steve Otfinoski is a multi-published author of over 100 books on money, investing, history, biographies, and advocacy projects and published his first work in the mid-1980s. He has traveled with theater groups all over the country that work to bring history alive for young learners. His stories are primarily aimed at children or young adults, so the writing style is informative and fun to read with your parents!
A Kid’s Guide to Collecting Coins by Arlyn G. Sieber
Skills Learned From This Guide
- How-to’s, tips, and tools to start a coin collection
- Fun facts to share with friends and family
- History
- Research
- Problem solving
Intended Age Group
10-12
About A Kid’s Guide to Collecting Coins
This book was written by a professional numismatist of 25 years and has fun puzzles to solve about coins that encourage kids to find answers for yourselves to teach research and problem-solving. The focus is on starting a coin collection on a budget, so it’s easy for everyone to enjoy this fun hobby!
About the Author
Arlyn Sieber is a veteran numismatist, writer, editor, and contributor that has been in the trade for 25 years and published 11 books on coins, coin history, world currency, and the global impact of coin collecting. Her passion has produced numerous coin field guides that can be used by aspiring collectors to improve their knowledge of coins and identify good finds for their collections. Her desire to educate learners of all ages about coins and currency has led to many collaboration projects with other passionate authors.
Coin Collecting for the Next Generation by Kevin Flynn
Skills Learned From This Guide
- Coming up with creative ideas for getting new collectors interested in coins
- How to get kids engaged in coin clubs or coin shows
- Sharing the hobby with your parents
- Goal setting
- Patience
- Attention to detail
- Organization
- Socialization
- Responsibility
Intended Age Group
6-12 & Parents
About Coin Collecting for the Next Generation
This book aims to get kids involved in the whole experience of coin collecting by going to shows and collectors clubs in your community. Activity ideas from 10 leading experts in coin collecting shows help make shows family-friendly and kid-friendly. Kids and parents can learn about coin collecting together and build a passion project that the entire family can enjoy.
About the Author
Kevin Flynn has written multiple books on coin collecting and reference guides that discuss the scarcity of specific coins, values, die varieties, and RPMs. He started collecting coins as a Boy Scout to earn his merit badge and started focusing on the Two Cent series in 1989. He would go to the National Archives in Philadelphia on Saturdays to read about coins and the history behind each one until he had written over 30 books on various coin topics. His passion for collecting has brought him to collaborate with others in the coin collecting space to produce guides used by veteran investors.
National Geographic Kids Everything Money by Kathy Furgang
Skills Learned From This Guide
- History of money
- Making, spending, and saving money
- Fun with money
- Power of money
- Myths of money
- Currency exchange rates
Intended Age Group
8-12
About National Geographic Kids Everything Money
This book is a colorful and interactive book about money and how it is used worldwide, not just in the United States. There are many sections on various money topics, so kids can jump around to find what interests you if you don’t want to sit and read cover to cover. Fun facts, large print, and bright photos make learning about money fun!
About the Author
Kathy Furgang is an established children’s author experienced in writing a curriculum for children and young adults. She has written multiple National Geographic teaching materials and even won the 2014 Louis J. Batton Author’s Award for her National Geographic book, Everything Weather. Her career spans 25 years and targets learners in the K-12 space after learning early on that learners have comprehension levels based not only on age but also on maturity. She has worked on projects like Sesame Street coloring books and the Magic Tree House books.
Coin Starter Kit & Activity Book for Kids by the U.S. Mint
Skills Learned From This Guide
- Differences between circulated and uncirculated coins
- How to use a magnifying glass to study coins
- What coin collecting is and who should collect coins
Intended Age Group
12-18
About Coin Starter Kit & Activity Book for Kids
Made by the United States Mint, a diverse cast of kid characters takes readers through identifying unique traits of different kinds of coins using a magnifying glass and includes coins that can be easily removed and reinserted into the book so kids can take them out to study over and over again. The activity book has puzzles and word scrambles for kids to solve and learn more about coin collecting and minting. Follow along with the process of how coins are manufactured.
About the Author
This activity guide was created by the United States Mint, the primary producer of United States currency, and authorized by the United States government to produce legal tender. The United States Mint is an excellent resource for learning about coinage, resources for coin handling and storage, as well as being a resource for purchasing uncirculated or rare coins or sets of coins to add to your collection! The kids’ section on the US Mint website has coloring pages, online activities, videos, games, stories, and interactive resources for kids to interact with and learn from that can be shared with friends or parents.
Frequently Asked Questions for Beginners to Think About
- What kind of coins do you want to collect?
- Where are you going to store the coins to keep them safe, dry, and cool?
- Do you have adults in your life that can teach you about where to find coins and how to take care of them properly?
- What are common challenges that coin collectors run into that you can learn as a kid and avoid later on?
- Is this a hobby or am I looking to invest in coins for the long term? Or both?
Another cool thing to do is find coin shops in your area that offer education or classes on coin collecting. We found some clubs in our area that hold coin collecting meetings for beginners and professional collectors!
These same groups host coin shows a couple of times per year where coin dealers from out of state bring their collections to show others and sell some of their collections.
Bottom Line
These are the top 5 books for kids interested in learning as much as possible about collecting coins, but many others will help guide, educate, inform, and make learning about this hobby fun for all ages!
Many kids have started coin collections over the last couple of thousand years. It’s not just a hobby for kings anymore because all of us have access to change, inexpensive materials for junior collectors (like soft gloves or pads), and the information available thanks to the internet makes this a hobby that anyone can get into.
This is a great way to start investing and build valuable skills while having fun and learning history! Learn fun facts to share with friends, family, and neighbors!
Some parents have shared that their kids talk to friends and neighbors about their collections. Some have offered coins from their own collections or travels around the world to help kids get started collecting. Add some coins from other countries or different states to your collection and learn the history of them to add to your fun!
Interested in starting your own coin collection? Check out our picks for the best coin collecting folders too!
