So my 7 year old nephew said he wants to collect coins!

AnkurJ

Well actually I asked him if he likes some of the coins I show him, and he said yes! I asked him if he wants to collect with me, and he said, um...ok

So then I asked him what his favorite type of coin is, and his reply was dimes because they are small, shiny, and even though they are small, are worth more than some bigger coins! I am planning on buying an album for him, but wasnt sure if I should do merc dimes or roosevelt. I know some merc dimes can get rather pricey, and they would be hard for him to find in rolls or in change. What do you guys recommend?

Ankur

jmski52

The obvious starting point would be a Whitman album of Roosies that your nephew can find from circulation, in my opinion. A collector is born.

mingot

Agree with Roosevelts. Something that he can fill from pocket finds is going to be a LOT more fun for him. Feed him a <65 every now and then to fill that half of the album and he'll be set. The cool thing is that the collection can actually be completed.

QuarterCollector

Congratulations... I wish my kids would show some interest. I agree with the others start him on Roosevelt dimes. He can fill most of the album holes at his local bank.

Tom

AnkurJ

I'm not familiar with Roosevelts at all, are there any key dates? Which album is better? Dansco or Whitman?

Raybob15239

At seven, go with State Quarters. The other key here is that it is very likely that at some point the "collection" will be raided for a trip to the corner store for pop or candy, or the Good Humor Man... I would hate to see the Mercs (or silver Roosies) go bye-bye.

claychaser

I would recommend silver coins, and if he likes dimes, Mercs. When TrainNut was starting, Randy (topdollarpaid) would let him paw through the silver buckets at his shop and he picked off some rather nice XF-AU walkers for his set at junk silver melt prices. After time, if the YN decides to move on, he can sell off his silver with a good chance at a profit. THis gives him lots of chances to look at coins to recognize damage, cleaning, toning, etc. Of course, you will need a friendly dealer that buys silver coins off the street to co-op on that venture.

It's kind of a stealth savings plan for him, and a lot of fun too.

messydesk

He's 7 and is impressed with shiny, not intrinsic bullion value. There are coins older than his father (statistically driven demographic assumption) that are clad. To a 7-year-old, those are ancient enough to impress. A Whitman dime folder and a trip to the bank for a couple rolls of dimes would be worth just as much to him as silver, and you wouldn't have to worry about him spending the silver ones should he lose interest in a couple months (he's 7). There's plenty of enjoyment and enough he can learn to become an accomplished collector (for a 7-year-old) without spending much money. If he's fortunate enough to find a silver coin in a bank roll, just hope it's after he's appreciated how unlikely that is, because that will make it more cool and exciting.

llafoe

Are you a cheap Uncle or a loving Uncle... if cheap, do Roosies... if loving, do BOTH!

Mar327

I wrote a thread about my 6 y/o grandson starting a collection, and we started with Lincoln cents. He's gone through so many cents and about has the 2nd book done (memorials). We're going to a coin show next week so he can look for wheaties. He also has a big interest in Buffalo Nickels, so I need to find him an album for that. He has the Red Book about memorized and before Buffalo Nickels, his eyes fell on the gold Buffaloes... I had to direct his attention back to the nickel section!

I really recommend the Roosies so he can find them from pocket change. As he sees his accomplishment in filling a folder, perhaps he'll be drawn to other coins as well. Let him see your different types, or let him go through an old Red Book. I hope he stays interested, I love seeing the little ones become YNs! At 6 and 7 I think they are VYM - (V = very)!

edited for spelling

AnkurJ

Will start with roosies and see how his interest goes. I'm not sure if he will have the attention span to go to a show right now.

cmerlo1

Buy him a Red Book, too!

Broadstruck

I wouldn't buy him any coins just yet... Get him Kevin Flynn's "The Authoritative Reference on Roosevelt Dimes" book first and see how he responds

PinkFloyd

Yeah, I always loved looking through the red books when I was little.

I like the idea of the book of modern roosies. You can get 'em at the bank. Maybe state quarters too if he's still interested after awhile. And the new national park quarters might be fun because they're actively being released. Great way to learn about the parks too.

ColonelJessup

Possible solutions:
1) give him a time-out
2) psychotherapy
3) prayer circle
4) exorcism
5) per another current thread: Ex-Lax.

melvin289

Go with clad Roosevelts ot State Quarters. Coin collecting is like fishing or golf, it can't be taught. One either loves it or has no use for it at all. I had a love for coins as young as 7 and you should be able to tell if he has the bug or not in a short time. If the bug is there then maybe go to silver or a more difficult set. Good luck with the nephew.

Ron

Bochiman

If he wants small, shiny, and worth more than some bigger coins, and he is related to you, you should help him do $1 gold pieces

fiveNdime

my son, 8 has also shown intrest. he likes the number 10, so dimes were the obvious start point.
he also is more intrested in the look than value.
he has the merc dimes i had collected, mostly from change, as well.

his allowance is paid in dimes.
he has traded the tooth fairy's ikes for dimes.

his whitman album is nearly complete.

he has also been collecting the 2010 (the 10 again) shield pennies... only the shiny ones.

the local B&M has given him a few large copper coins which he likes too.