Here are some ideas and resources for teaching students to tell the time.
Formative Assessment
Start with a question or problem to determine students’ level of understanding regarding time. For example, show students 2 clocks and have students record what they notice and what they wonder.
Watching the clock
Whole class activity- Record the time very 5 minutes, for 35 minutes.
Students glued strips of clock faces into their maths book, prior to 9:00am.
I used the following clock to display the real time on the interactive white board, so all students could see: https://www.visnos.com/demos/clock
I thought students could do a colouring/mindfulness sheet in between the 5 minute intervals, however by the time we had discussed what the time was, different ways we could write it and what they noticed, we needed to record the next time.
Clock as a timeline
As a class, we worked through the following steps:
- Each table group got an A3 piece of paper. The paper was folded into quarters (horizontally) and cut, to make strips of paper. Each student got one strip of paper.
- Each student, folded their strip in half (horizontally) and ruled a line along the fold.
- Next, each student folded the strip of paper into sixteenths (vertically), by folding the paper in 1/2, 4 times.
- Then, each student put a mark on each fold line. We numbered each mark, counting by ones. Students cut half way between 12 and 13, with the numbers above 12, being discarded.
- I then told students that we were going to have a second numberline on the same piece of paper, which counted in fives. Students used a different coloured marker to write the numbers. ***This is when students started to make connections between the numberline and a clock.
- We had a discussion about how the number line and clock were similar and different.
- Students cut their numbeline, between each number.
- Students then arranged their numbers to make a clock face. The picture of a clock in the middle of the number line numbers, was create without prompting and was the student’s way of comparing the two clocks.
- Students wrote a reflection, to demonstrate their understanding of the connections made during the lesson.
Practise Telling the Time 
***Students all have physical clocks on their tables (as shown in the picture on the right). When the minute hand moves, they can see how the hour hand moves.
- Match times, includes: matching digital, analogue and time in words.
- Ordering times: Students draw hands on the analogue clock to match the digital clock or time in words, cut out the clocks and glue the clocks in order, in their maths book.
- Time before and time after: Students glue a clock face which shows the time one hour before, and one hour after.
- Clock game: (Free, with three levels of difficulty)
Problem Solving with Time
I use the following sources for problem solving questions involving time:
- FREE: Past NAPLAN test papers. Examples of good questions.
- Expensive: Macmillan Maths: Problem Solving Box 1 to 6 pack. Comes with a CD, so resources can be put on a USB or hard drive.
More maths…
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Click here for information about the structure of maths lessons and effective pedagogical practice.
More resources…
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Brianna Laxton 