Louis’s Lunch Change

Louis and Sarah stopped at a café with Dad after a long walk. Louis had ten dollars for his lunch. He chose a wrap costing six dollars and forty cents, and a juice costing two dollars and eighty cents. “Will ten dollars cover both?” Sarah asked.

Louis added the dollar parts first. Six dollars and two dollars made eight dollars. Then he added the cents. Forty cents and eighty cents made one hundred and twenty cents. He paused. “That’s more than a dollar. I can exchange one hundred cents for a dollar and keep twenty cents.”

One hundred cents made one dollar, leaving twenty cents. Louis added the extra dollar to the eight dollars. His lunch would cost nine dollars and twenty cents altogether. “Ten dollars is enough,” he said. “But I should get some change back.”

Sarah suggested counting up from the cost. Nine dollars and twenty cents to ten dollars was eighty cents. Louis checked by adding twenty cents and eighty cents to make a full dollar. With the nine dollars already there, the amount reached his ten dollars.

At the counter, Louis told the server his order and checked the total before paying. The server gave him his change. Dad waited while Louis counted it carefully. Eighty cents was right. Louis put the money straight into his zipped pocket, away from the food tray.

Outside, a gust caught the napkin on their table. Sarah held it down while Louis moved the juice farther from the edge. Dad brought the wraps over. They settled into their seats, pleased to have a quiet place to rest after the walk.

Sarah asked Louis to explain the extra dollar again. He showed it with a quick drawing on the back of their shopping note. “The cents made one hundred and twenty. One hundred became a dollar, and twenty stayed as cents.” Sarah followed each part.

When they left, Louis checked that his pocket was zipped. He had bought his lunch and kept track of his change. “I can work it out this way next time too,” he said. Dad smiled. Louis could check both the total and the change before leaving the counter.