learning clocks

5 ways to use learning clocks in the classroom

Whether you are introducing time as a concept to young children, or making sure that your students can understand time through real-world examples, learning clocks are an excellent time-teaching tool. Learning clocks not only help children tell the time, but are also an effective way to introduce maths concepts such as fractions, addition and subtraction.  

If you are searching for useful resources and practical tips to make the most of the learning clocks in your classroom, read on.

Time teaching

Our colourful, engaging classroom learning clocks are an excellent tool for introducing the concept of time to students. These clocks are designed to include all the information that a child needs to learn to tell time, including clearly-marked minutes, ten-minute blocks, and ‘past/to’ indicators. These straightforward visuals make it easier for children to understand and engage with the concept of time, and these time-telling skills can subsequently be applied to many mathematical activities. This can include addition and subtraction, as pupils can use the clock to add and subtract by counting minutes and hours. For example, if it is currently 10 past the hour, you can ask the children to add five minutes, which is easily achieved on our clocks.  

Link to the curriculum

Our learning clocks come with curriculum notes printed on the back, making it easier for you to deliver a detailed and accessible time-telling demonstration that is linked to the curriculum. This ensures that you are teaching your students time in a way that is consistent with the expectations of their education. 

The school day

Another effective way to use our learning clocks in the classroom is to link time-telling activities to the school day. Young children are more likely to engage with a concept if they can see how it relates to their own experiences, and using the clock to demonstrate their own timetable is an effective time-teaching strategy. This can be done by demonstrating when lunchtime, breaktime, or lessons begin and end, as well as encouraging them to tell the time of these scheduled activities themselves. 

Pair with games 

Using learning clocks as part of an educational game is another effective way to engage your students and in learning to tell time. Our TwinTime cards are perfect for this, as you set a time and ask your pupils to replicate it on their own cards, with space for them to also write in the analogue or digital time.  

There are several different ways to make this game more engaging and challenging, including having the pupils work in pairs or small groups to see who can replicate the time the fastest, or who can get the most correct answers in a set amount of time. This makes the challenge of learning to tell the time a collaborative and engaging activity that can be shared with friends. 

Support students with dyscalculia 

For students with dyscalculia, learning to tell the time can be particularly challenging. If you have pupils with dyscalculia in your classroom, then our learning clocks are an excellent resource to support these students with minimal differentiation. The colourful, clear designs of our clocks break down the concept of time into a straightforward pattern that makes it much easier for children with dyspraxia to engage with time and numbers.  

Once your students are comfortable with the basics, you can start to introduce more complex concepts, such as fractions and time zones, with our accessible designs. To support students with dyscalculia, it’s important to be patient and to provide plenty of opportunities for practice and reinforcement, which is made easy with our range of classroom resources. 

Conclusion 

By linking the clock to the curriculum, incorporating the students timetables, pairing it with games, and supporting students with dyscalculia, you can ensure that your students learn to tell the time in a fun and interactive way. By utilising a learning clock in your classroom, your students can develop their time-telling skills while also engaging in teamwork, friendly competition, physical activity, and memory improvement. 

Why not try using learning clocks in your classroom today and see the difference they can make for your students.  

Tell the time clocks to help kids with maths

Tell the time clocks to help children with maths

When teaching your children the basics of maths, tell the time clocks are a great resource to start with. By helping them understand and explain time, these clocks can introduce your child to maths concepts in an engaging and accessible way that gets their learning off to the best start. If you are searching for resources to support your child’s learning, EasyRead is here to help with a range of time teaching clocks and resources. 

How do tell the time clocks support learning? 

Tell the time clocks are excellent tools for teaching children the basics of telling the time, which can also help them with their maths skills. Clocks are often one of the very first experiences that children have with mathematics, and with numbers in general. By learning to tell the time, children can develop the basic mathematical skills needed to understand the progression of time and the number sequence visible on all clocks. Our tell the time clocks clearly detail the 60 minutes of each hour, as well as the 12 hours of the daily cycle, giving children the opportunity to familiarise themselves with these numbers and their connection to each other, before they move on to developing their mathematical skills.  

These time telling skills can easily be adapted to teach children the basics of addition and subtraction, as they can use the clock to add and subtract by counting minutes and hours. For example, if it is currently 10 past the hour, you can ask the children to add five minutes, which is easily achieved on our clocks.  

Our tell the time clocks  

Our time teaching clocks can help children get a head start in understanding maths and telling time. Whether you have a requirement for a wall clock, an alarm clock for your child’s bedside table, or a watch to support their independent learning, our tell the time clocks are simple and detailed resources. We supply both ‘minutes past and to’ the hour, or ’12 /24 hour’ clocks to support you in teaching your child the time using a method that works best for you.   

Overall, our tell the time clocks are an excellent way to introduce children to the basics of time telling and maths. By making it easier for them to understand and practise telling the time, the clocks can help children build their confidence and learn the basics of maths in a fun and engaging way.  

World Maths Day 

As the world’s largest online mathematics competition, World Maths Day is a global celebration of mathematics and an opportunity for children across the world to demonstrate their mathematical capabilities. This year, World Maths Day will be held on Wednesday 23rd March and includes Live Mathletics challenges for millions of students to participate in. As an inclusive celebration, students aged 5 to 18 across the world will be able to access this free competition, as well as students learning from home.  

If you are interested in supporting your child’s early mathematical learning, and their time telling ability, ahead of this years’ World Maths Day, view our full range of tell the time clocks today