Published : 2023-07-19

How to learn to tell the time to your child?

- Categories : Child Sleep , Parents Corner

IN THIS ARTICLE :

Learning to Tell Time at School
The Best Method to Teach Telling Time
Tips and Tricks

Learning to tell time—it’s a skill we’ve mastered long ago, but one your little one will soon need to pick up.

Children typically start wanting to understand their daily routine between the ages of 3 and 7. Around that time, they begin to explore the concept of the short and long hands on a clock.

It’s also the age when they might ask for a watch, “just like grown-ups.” So, time for a little refresher! When is the right time to teach your child how to tell time—and are there more effective methods than others?

Learning to Tell Time at School

Starting in Year 3, around age 7, your child will begin to learn how to tell time. But don’t expect it to happen in a single school year—it’s a gradual process!

The teacher will revisit and deepen this learning in Year 4, and even again in Year 6 if needed. That said, most of the key concepts are usually introduced during Year 4.

The best way to help children grasp the concept is by using a large classroom clock they can move and explore on their own.

But teaching time isn't just about reading a clock! Children will also learn how different civilizations had their own ways of measuring time—from sundials to hourglasses and even mechanical timers, there are many creative ways to mark the passage of time.

In Year 3, your little one will explore the basic parts of a clock: the face, the hour hand, then the minute hand, and finally the second hand. Telling exact hours becomes part of the Year 4 curriculum. That’s when they’ll learn that an hour equals 60 minutes, and a minute equals 60 seconds. Things get a bit trickier in Year 5, with concepts like “quarter to,” “twenty to,” or “twenty-five to.” You’ll need a bit of patience, but soon enough, your child will master telling time like a pro!

The Step-by-Step Method to Teach Telling Time

As you’ve probably guessed, learning to tell time is a gradual process. There’s no need to rush or expect your child to become a clock-reading expert overnight.

Here’s the method commonly used in primary school classrooms. Depending on how your child is progressing, feel free to revisit certain concepts together at home!

Clock observation The first step is to ask your child to describe what they see on the clock. What shape is it? Where are the numbers? Where are the hands? Then, name each part one by one. Make sure your child clearly understands the difference between the hour hand, the minute hand, and the second hand.

Clock observation – Part 2 Clock observation – Part 2: Now move on to exploring the numbers on the clock face. The dial is divided into 12 equal sections. Each section is marked with a number from 1 to 12. These are the largest and most important numbers—they represent the hours. To read them in order, start at the top and move clockwise. Do the same with the minutes! This time, the clock is divided into 60 segments, and the numbers usually increase by fives.

Clock observation – Part 3 Now ask your child to watch how the hands move. Each hand points in a different direction. To tell the time correctly, simply read the number it’s pointing to. All the hands move in the same direction, but at different speeds! The hour hand moves the slowest, while the second hand is the fastest.

The hour hand Set your clock to exactly twelve o’clock. Then move the small hour hand and ask your child to read the number it points to. Try this several times, then ask your child to set the clock on their own to 4 o’clock, 10 o’clock, and so on.

The hour hand – Part 2 Now it’s time to explain the difference between morning and afternoon hours. There are only 12 numbers on the clock face, but a full day has 24 hours! That means the hour hand goes around the clock twice each day. To make this easier to understand, use a second clock—this time with numbers from 13 to 24 instead of 1 to 12.

The minute hand Now let’s move on to the minute hand. This one moves faster and completes a full rotation in one hour. Here comes the first challenge: not every minute is labeled on the clock! Only the numbers “5, 10, 15,” and so on appear. But show your child that the clock has small tick marks that help spot the minutes that aren’t part of the 5-times table!

⏰ Practice time Go back to the exercise from step 3. Now move the minute hand to numbers on the 5-times table. For example: it’s 3 o’clock and 20 minutes—so, 3:20! Repeat the exercise, but this time, place the minute hand wherever you like. “It’s 4 o’clock and 20 minutes plus 3 more minutes, so 4:23!” Finally, try the same activity using the afternoon clock. Once your child feels confident, switch to using just the correct clock for the time of day.

The second hand Your child now knows how to tell time—but there’s still the concept of how time is divided. Show them the second hand and explain that one full rotation equals one minute. Go back over everything they’ve learned: 60 seconds make 1 minute, 60 minutes make 1 hour, the hour hand takes 12 hours to complete a full circle, and there are 24 hours in a day!

Tips to Help Your Child Learn to Tell Time

To make learning easier and more fun, here are a few helpful tips you can try at home!

Ask your child for the time throughout the day
At key moments, say the time out loud while pointing to the clock!
Make a paper clock together! It’s a fun bonding activity, and the clock can be used as a learning tool. You can even have your child draw fun little characters to mark different times of day—like mealtimes or bedtime!
Give them a real watch—but skip the digital ones. While digital displays may seem easier and often feature their favorite characters, they can actually slow down the learning process.

Discover REMI
THE SMART ALARM CLOCK 😊

REMI and its app bring together everything you need to manage your baby’s sleep!

Its mission? Helping families sleep better — from birth up to age 10.

 5/5

Super Fun!
I bought REMI for my 4-year-old son who didn’t want to sleep alone anymore after his little sister was born. Thanks to the remote wake-up system and bedtime stories I can play from a distance, the issue is completely resolved! I 100% recommend this purchase!