Grade 3: Telling Time

Warm up with a quick recall on the board. Teach the hour hand first, then half past and quarter past/to, then count by fives for five-minute times, and finally to the minute. Link analog to digital.

Telling time means reading an analog clock. Children build from o'clock and half-past to quarter and five-minute intervals. Model the method clearly, thinking aloud:

• Start with o'clock, then half-past.
• Add quarter-past and quarter-to.
• Move to five-minute intervals.
• Practise both reading and drawing the hands.

Do the first few questions of the practice worksheet together, one child explaining each step. Check for understanding before releasing the class to work alone.

Students complete the worksheet independently. Hand out the three difficulty levels below so every child works at the right stretch.

Circulate and look for these, they are the usual sticking points:

• Mixing up the hour and minute hands.
• Reading the hour wrong when the minute hand is near 12.
• Confusing quarter-to and quarter-past.
• Reading the minute hand as the hour, and muddling 'quarter to' with 'quarter past'.

Pull the class back together. Ask one child to explain telling time in their own words, pose a single check question everyone answers on a mini whiteboard, and name what you will build on next lesson.

Use the independent worksheet as the evidence. A child who can complete it accurately and explain one answer has met the objective; anyone who cannot needs the easier level and a short reteach next session.