Telling Time When Math Is Hard
Reading a clock face is a skill of its own. One 2012 study compared children with math difficulties and other children (Burny and colleagues). The first group made more errors reading clocks. The study looked at groups. Our suggestion is to start with the hour hand. Do it alongside your child's math instruction, not in place of it.
TL;DR
- Reading a clock face is a skill of its own.
- One 2012 study compared children with math difficulties and other children (Burny and colleagues). The first group made more errors reading clocks. The study looked at groups, not single children.
- Clock trouble on its own does not tell you a child has dyscalculia.
- These are our own suggestions. Start with o'clock, then half past, quarters, fives and minutes. Do them alongside your child's math instruction, not in place of it.
- We hold no study that tests the activities on this page. That is a gap in what we hold, not a finding that they do not work.
What the research we hold says about clocks
We hold two studies of children and clocks.
One study looked at clock reading in two groups (Burny and colleagues, 2012). The Burny study had 154 children with math difficulties and 571 other children. In the Burny study, children with math difficulties made more errors reading clocks. Those children found five-minute and one-minute times especially hard. The Burny authors link the errors to how the children counted and recalled facts. The Burny study looked at groups, not at one child. We could read only the Burny study's summary.
Another study asked 105 children about time (Labrell and colleagues, 2016). They were aged 6 to 11. The Labrell study's questions included telling the time on a clock. In the Labrell study, knowledge of time was "strongly linked" to number skills. The Labrell study looked for links, not causes. It had one group of children. We could read only the Labrell study's summary.
Clock trouble on its own does not tell you a child has dyscalculia.
We hold no study that tests the activities on this page. That is a gap in what we hold, not a finding that they do not work.
Why a clock can be hard
Reading a clock face is a skill of its own. To us, a clock face asks a lot at once.
In our view, these are the jobs it asks for:
- Two hands. Each hand tells you something different.
- Two meanings for each number. The 3 can mean three o'clock. It can also mean fifteen minutes.
- Counting by fives. Reading the minutes means counting by fives around the face.
- Counting on by ones. A time like 7:23 means fives, then single minutes.
- Before and after. "Quarter to" counts back from the hour.
To us, that is a lot of counting for one glance. A digital clock gives the numbers ready to read. In our view, an analog face asks a child to work the numbers out.
Activities to try
These are our own suggestions. Do them alongside your child's math instruction, not in place of it. None needs special materials. For games on other math skills, see our page Math Activities That Build the Underlying Skills.
A paper clock. Make a clock from a paper plate. Write the numbers around the edge. Fix two card hands in the middle with a paper fastener. Say a time, and let your child set it. Then swap. Your child says a time, and you set it.
The hour hand on its own. Take the long hand off the paper clock. Point the short hand at 4. Ask what time it is. Then point it halfway between 4 and 5. In our view, "about half past 4" is a good answer.
Fives around the face. Point at each number in turn. Count by fives together: 5, 10, 15, up to 60. Then point the long hand at 4. Ask how many minutes. Count up to check.
Digital beside analog. Write a time like 3:30 on a card. Ask your child to set the paper clock to match. Then set a time, and ask them to write it.
Everyday times. Use times that matter to your child. Bedtime, a show, or when a friend comes over. Ask where the hands will be. Then check on a real clock when the time comes.
Our working order
Our working order is o'clock first, then half past. Then quarter past and quarter to. Then times to the five minutes. Last, times to the single minute.
Our working order is objects first, then a drawing, then the written numbers. On a clock, start with the paper clock and its hands. Next, draw the hands on a printed clock face. Last, write the time as numbers, such as 4:30. In our view, that keeps each number tied to where the hands sit.
When something is too hard, go back a step.
Planning and a sense of how long things take is another topic. See our page Time Management for Children Who Have No Sense of Time.
When to ask for help
Each of these is a reason to ask for help on its own.
- Little change, even with steady practice and good teaching.
- Math well below your child's other schoolwork.
- A teacher who raises a concern about math.
- Extreme upset about math.
- Complete avoidance of math.
- Worry about math that spreads into the rest of learning.
- Sadness or worry that lasts.
- A skill that was there and has gone. Our position is that a lost skill goes to a doctor first, not a tutor.
If no skill has gone, start with the teacher. Say what you are seeing at home, and what you have tried. Beyond the teacher, the right person depends on what it turns out to be about. If the work is too hard, someone who works on that school skill. If worry or mood is the thing, someone who works with children's mental health. In our view, if you are worried enough to ask, a professional evaluation is worth asking about.
Any talk of hurting themselves is a same-day call to your doctor or a crisis line.
In the classroom
In our view, note which clock times come quickly and which take counting.
One sentence for an email home: "She reads 4:00 and 4:30 on our clock, but not 4:25. What do you see at home?"
Key Takeaways
Reading a clock face is a skill of its own.
One 2012 study compared children with math difficulties and other children (Burny and colleagues). The first group made more errors reading clocks. The study looked at groups, not single children.
Clock trouble on its own does not tell you a child has dyscalculia.
The activities on this page are our own suggestions. Do them alongside your child's math instruction, not in place of it.
Our working order is o'clock, half past, quarters, fives, then single minutes.
We hold no study that tests the activities on this page. That is a gap in what we hold, not a finding that they do not work.
Our position is that a lost skill goes to a doctor first, not a tutor.
Set the short hand of a paper clock halfway between two numbers. Ask your child what time it is. You are not testing anything. You are watching how they work it out.
”What to do tonightWhat to use next
A set of questions you answer about what you see at home. A screener is a starting point, not a diagnosis. If your child might need formal accommodations (an IEP or 504 plan), or you suspect a vision, hearing, or medical cause, pursue a professional evaluation too — that's the only route to those supports.
What sits underneath arithmetic, one skill at a time, worked alongside math instruction, not in place of it.
Common questions from parents
What activities help teach time to kids?
These are our own suggestions. Start with the hour hand on its own. Then count by fives around the face. A paper clock your child sets is a good tool, in our view. Do these alongside your child's math instruction, not in place of it. We hold no study that tests the activities on this page. That is a gap in what we hold, not a finding that they do not work.
Is trouble telling time a sign of dyscalculia?
Clock trouble on its own does not tell you a child has dyscalculia. One 2012 study compared children with math difficulties and other children (Burny and colleagues). The first group made more errors reading clocks. The study looked at groups, not single children. Our position is that a lost skill goes to a doctor first. If no skill has gone, start with the teacher. Tell them what you see at home.
My child reads a digital clock but not an analog one. Why?
In our view, the two ask different things. A digital clock shows the numbers for you. To us, an analog face asks a child to count in fives, then ones. One 2012 study compared children with math difficulties and other children (Burny and colleagues). The first group found five-minute and one-minute times especially hard. That study looked at groups, not at one child. Our suggestion is to set a paper clock to match a digital time. Do it alongside your child's math instruction, not in place of it.
My child could tell the time and now cannot. What should I do?
Our position is that a lost skill goes to a doctor first, not a tutor. In our view, make that appointment soon. Tell the doctor what your child could do before, and what is different now.