The coin crunch that’s changing how America buys fries

Answer: McDonald’s and Burger King

Questions:

• Do you think the penny is still useful, or is it time to get rid of it?
• If businesses have to round prices, should they round up, down, or to the nearest nickel? What’s the fairest way?
• If more businesses stop accepting cash because coins are scarce, could that affect anyone negatively?

Click here for the ready-to-go slides for this Question of the Day that you can use in your classroom.

Behind the numbers (People):

"McDonald's is adapting to the halt of penny production and the resulting shortage. The fast food chain's representative confirmed to ABC News that it is in the process of establishing an system to round down or up to the nearest five cents. The change comes as the production of pennies ceased, causing an issue for many customers and cashiers to provide exact change."

About the Author

Dave Martin

Dave joins NGPF with 15 years of teaching experience in math and computer science. After joining the New York City Teaching Fellows program and earning a Master's degree in Education from Pace University, his teaching career has taken him to New York, New Jersey and a summer in the north of Ghana. Dave firmly believes that financial literacy is vital to creating well-rounded students that are prepared for a complex and highly competitive world. During what free time two young daughters will allow, Dave enjoys video games, Dungeons & Dragons, cooking, gardening, and taking naps.