Advanced Time-Telling Skills for Kids

Posted on 06/16/2017

alarm clock on shelf

Once you've begun teaching your child how to tell time, he or she may be ready to learn more advanced time-telling skills. In addition to acquiring a sense of time, your child will need these skills in order to be able to tell time from any clock, anywhere.

Clocks with No Numbers

By simply remembering the order of the numbers, mastering time-telling means your child will be able to tell time even without numbers. One way to practice is to have your child stand in a hula hoop (or a circle made from a rope or anything else you have on hand) and face toward where any given number would be; an additional skill honed by this activity would be to approximate location. You could practice that extension skill by hiding something and playing the game "Hot or Cold?" Your child could ask you if the item is at their 2 o'clock, and you could say either "hot" (if it's close) or "cold" if it isn't. Let's say the item is at 9 o'clock, so you would have said "cold." If your child asks next if it is at 6 o'clock, you would say, "warmer," and so on, until your child guesses the location of the hidden object.

Roman Numerals

Since the goal is to be able to read any clock, you'll want to explain that some time pieces use Roman numerals instead of "normal" ones. A child can learn to recognize Roman numerals, like Arabic numerals, even before he or she has the fine motor skills necessary to write clearly. In fact, Roman numerals may be even easier for a child to remember because they utilize fewer symbols. Since the first several symbols (and the only ones you need to tell time) can be made with straight lines, you could easily practice making them with sticks from outside, toothpicks, Q-tips, or popsicle sticks. This book makes learning them entertaining, with counting pigs as the theme.

Extension Activities

A 24-hour clock like this one is another extension activity for your mastery-level kids. After you learn military time, you can practice saying time in military fashion for the entire week. You could also try making your own sun dial. While you're at it, you may want to make sure your child understands how the earth's rotation is what defines a day, and how the various planets have days of different lengths. You could also look at a time zone map of the U.S. or this interactive one of the entire world. Perhaps your family could even set its clocks to Paris time for the week!

Like any other life skill, telling time may or may not be taught thoroughly in your child's school, but it's something you as a parent can help your child master.

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