1st Grade Math: Time Games

Overview of Grade

In grade 1, instructional time focuses on 4 critical areas:

1. Developing an understanding of addition and subtraction: The kids learn to represent and solve addition and subtraction word problems within 20. They understand the relationship between addition and subtraction. They also work with addition and subtraction equation to find the missing whole number in the equation.
2. Developing an understanding of place value system: The kids learn to count to 120, starting from any number less than 120. They understand place value system and are able to compare two-digit numbers based on the meaning of tens and one digits. They are taught to add/subtract the multiples to 10 in the range 10-90.
3. Developing an understanding of linear measurement: The kids learn to measure length indirectly and by iterating length units. They are able to tell and write time in hours and half hours using analog and digital clocks. They are also expected to organize, represent and interpret data with questions like how many total, how many in each category or how many few or more.
4. Recognizing attributes of shapes: The kids distinguish between defining attributes and non-defining attributes of shapes. They are taught to partition circles and rectangles into two and four equal shares.

Overview of Topic

Telling time is a very important concept to be learned in early school years. Knowing about time helps kids in several ways. They learn about time table or timetables chart in their school that makes them understand how the things are planned according to the time. The importance of time does not diminish from school years to work years. The latest introduction of ‘work hours calculator’ in the offices, explains adults the importance of time. It is important to calculate work hours or calculate time card because it lets a person understand how effectively he/she works. Thus, it is important to introduce this skill in the early childhood years.

Benefits of Learning through Math Games

Many children find mathematics boring and uninteresting.  Learning math through games can change child’s negative attitude towards math. There are many math learning games that can easily be adapted in the classroom or at home. One can find math games and activity for kids that require little or no equipment to make math concepts interesting. For example, puzzle games, logic puzzles require only a sheet of paper. There are many interactive sites for education that offer free puzzle games and other learning games for kids.

The surveys have shown that the introduction of games in mathematics classroom has proved beneficial for the kids. The time for learning math should have a balanced mix of classroom learning and learning through games. Many educational websites have come up in the market that offers math riddles, a math dictionary, math quiz like math minutes. There are websites that are well-designed according to the state curriculum. One can find websites that are designed keeping in mind the grade wise curriculum or homeschooling curriculum. Such learning tools make even the most difficult topics of mathematics simpler. For example, the kids can learn time measurement by playing clock games over the internet. Once they get fluent in the skills to tell time date, they can practice telling time worksheets or play with analog clock online to master the concept.

Progression of Topic Time with Grades

Grade 1: The kids’ relate their understanding of partitioning circles to an analog clock. They see an analog clock as a circle partitioned into 12 equal parts. They learn about the hour hand and minute hand. They are able to tell time to the hour and to the half hour on an analog clock and digital clock. The kids’ get familiar with the vocabulary like 3 o’ clock and half past 3. They also are able to discriminate between time to the hour and time to the half hour. They learn about the position of a minute and hour hand.

Grade 2: The kids’ understanding of partitioning the circle into halves and quarters help them understand the concept of quarter hours. They understand that an analog time clock can be divided into four equal quarters. They learn about the terminologies like half past 9, quarter to 9, quarter past 9 etc. The kids use skip-counting to count by fives. They relate 60 minutes to 1 hour, 30 minutes to a half hour and 15 minutes to a quarter hour. For example, they relate half past 4 with 4:30, 4:15 with quarter past 4 and 4:45 with a quarter to 5. They relate numbers on the face of the clock with the intervals of 5 and use this understanding to tell time to the nearest 5 minutes. The kids also learn about a.m. and p.m. They also solve problems based on elapsed time using their subtraction skills.

Grade 3: The kids learn to tell time to the nearest minute on analog and digital clocks. They use number line as a tool to count minutes within an hour. The kids use both clock and a number line to solve telling time worksheets involving addition and subtraction of intervals of minutes. The kids at this stage no longer need hours and minutes calculator or time hour calculator.

Grade 4: The kids use four operations to solve word problems involving intervals of time. These problems also involve conversions. They are expected to convert minutes to hours or vice versa to solve problems.

Topic Overview

Understanding an Analog Time Clock

The kids visualize a circular analog clock as a circle partitioned into 12 equal parts. They notice that the equal parts are numbered from 1 to 12. The kids gain familiarity with the three hands of the clock. They learn that the hour hand is shorter and thicker, the minute hand is longer and thin and the second hand is very thin and long. Grade 1 learning only focuses on the hour hand and the minute hand. The kids learn about the rotation of the two hands. They learn that both hands of the clock keep moving, minute hand moving faster and hour hand moving faster.

Telling Time to Hour

• Understanding position of an hour and minute hands: The kids notice the positions of an hour and minute hands at different times. They see 12 o’ clock on an analog clock where they notice both hands point to 12. The kids understand that when the minute hand completes a round, the hour hand moves to the next number. The kids need to look at the hour hands to tell time to the hour. They understand that the terminology “o’ clock” is used only when it is a complete hour with no extra minutes.

• Digital Clock: The kids notice that digital clocks appear on their computers, microwave, oven etc. They learn the depiction of time to an hour on a digital clock. For example, 10 o’ clock on a digital clock look like 10:00.

• Question Time: The kids at this stage are expected to tell time to the hour. They should also be able to move clock hands to show a particular time.

The kids are expected to solve time worksheets that have problems like these:

• Write the time shown on the clock?

• Draw hour and minute hands on the clock to show 4 o’ clock.

Telling time to Half hour

• Understanding half hour: The kids identify two half-circles on the circular analog clock. This serves as a foundation for understanding the half hour. The kids understand when the minute hand moves halfway from 12 to 6, it is a half hour. They count by 5’s to 30 to realize that clocks have two 30-minutes which make 1 hour. They connect this understanding to realize that half hour has 30 minutes. They learn to read time to half hour in different ways like half past 3 and three hours and thirty minutes. They also learn depiction of time on digital clocks.  Half-past three on digital clocks will look like this 3:30. 
• The position of the hour hand and minute hand: The kids understand that the hour hand and minute hand moves every second. They realize that when the minute hand covers half of the way, the hour hand points in the middle of the two numbers. As shown on the clock above, the hour hand is between 3 and 4 when the minute hand is at 6.  
• Question Time: The kids at this stage are expected to tell time to the half hour. They should be able to understand the position of the hour hand pertaining to the minute hand.

The kids are expected to solve time worksheets that have problems like these:

• What time is shown by the clock?

• Draw hour and minute hands on the clock to show 4:30.

Application of calculating time to the hour and half hour

The kids apply their understanding to solve challenging math problems involving time. By the end of grade 1, the kids are expected to solve challenging math worksheets with questions like:

• Jacob went for shopping at 1 o’ clock. He returned home after 2 hours. At what time did Jacob return home?
• Nemo started her homework at 3:30. She finished it 5:30. How much time did she take to complete her homework?