Difficulty: Rating: GCSE Marks:

GCSE Text:
Marius has envelopes full of money that he needs to take to his bank. He has 9 envelopes each containing £1000 made up from only £10 notes. He also has 7 envelopes each containing £1000 made up from only £20 notes.

How many £10 notes should he have in total, and how many £20 notes should he have in total when he goes to the bank?

Suggestions:
This is a good GCSE level question for students sitting Foundation papers. Students love seeing money like this, and generally solve this within 5 minutes. A variety of different methods are possible, and conversations often follow regarding banking, security and money handling in general. A very popular video problem in class.

Extension Ideas:
Teachers could extend the learning by considering:

• The machine at the bank which accepts money can only process amounts up to £5000 per transaction. How many transactions will be needed to process all of this money?
• Marius has £5,070 in the bank already. What will his bank balance be once these envelopes of cash have been deposited?