Telling time is one step even a young child can take toward taking responsibility for his own activities. For some children, knowing what time it is---and therefore how much time they have left to play before dinner, for example---gives a sense of security and order. With the prevalence of digital clocks, even a very young child can learn to tell time. Learning to tell time on a digital clock first will not prevent a child from learning to read an analog clock later.
Foster Awareness Of Time
Step 1
Point out the time regularly throughout the day, especially if you are teaching a preschool aged child who may not be aware of the role time plays in her life. Show her the clock and tell her "It's 7:45. We have to leave at 8:00, so we have 15 minutes to get our shoes on."
Step 2
Create a schedule for your child on poster board, a whiteboard or chalkboard. Include important time-based events, such as meals, school, appointments, and play time. On the left, write the time that the event will take place. On the right, describe the event. If your child cannot read yet, draw pictures or print clip art images to depict the activity. If you have analog clocks in your home, draw a picture of a clock with the hands pointing to the appropriate times. You can include digital and analog representations on your child's schedule. Post the schedule near a clock.
Step 3
Ask your child to refer to his schedule frequently throughout the day. Ask him to match the time on the clock to an event on his schedule.
Teach Mechanics of Telling Time
Step 1
When your child is comfortable using her schedule, explain how time is represented on the clock. With a digital clock, explain that the hour is shown on the left of the colon, and the minutes are shown on the right. With an analog clock, show her that the shorter hour hand points to the hour and the longer minute hand points to the minute. Explain that the hands always move in a clockwise direction.
Step 2
Tell her that there are 60 minutes in each hour, and that minutes are counted from zero to 59, not one to 60, regardless of what type of clock she encounters.
Step 3
Even if you only have digital clocks in your home, find or draw a picture of an analog clock to demonstrate how the time shown on a digital clock is represented on an analog clock. Your child is likely to encounter analog clocks, and should know how to read both types.
Step 4
Continue to use the schedule you created earlier, and give your child plenty of opportunities to practice telling time.
Tips and Warnings
- For younger kids who may get overwhelmed by a full schedule, you can use index cards for each event in your child's day. Put the time on the left and a picture or word describing the event on the right. Post the cards near a clock.
Things You'll Need
- Clock or child-sized watch
- Poster board, whiteboard, or chalkboard
- Markers or chalk
