Learn to tell time

Read the clock and pick the right time. Start with o'clock and work up to telling time to the minute. Correct answers score a point, and the clock also shows how we say each time.

How to read a clock

1. The short red hand shows the hour.
2. The long blue hand shows the minutes. Count by fives from the 12.
3. Read the hour first, then the minutes: hour hand just past 3 and minute hand on 4 is 3:20.

Want to see a real clock? Open the analog clock, which you can show full screen in a classroom. Use the classroom timer for activities.

Questions people ask

At what age do kids learn to tell time?

Many children learn hours and half hours around ages 5 to 6 and can read time to five minutes by about 7 or 8, which is when most school curriculums teach it.

What is the best way to teach telling time?

Start with the hour hand alone, then o'clock and half past, then quarter past and quarter to, then counting by fives. Practice a few minutes a day with a real or on-screen clock.

Why is the hour hand between two numbers?

The hour hand moves slowly all hour long. At half past three it is halfway between the 3 and the 4. The hour is the number it has most recently passed.