What is this skill?
Telling time to five minutes means reading an analog clock when the minute hand points exactly at one of the twelve numbers. Each number on the clock face stands for five minutes past the hour, so the minute hand on the 4 means 20 minutes, and on the 9 means 45 minutes. Second graders count by 5s around the clock to find the minutes, then read the hour hand.
Reading 7:35, for example, means seeing that the minute hand is on the 7, counting 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, and then noticing that the short hand is past the 7 but not yet at the 8. Children also connect the clock to words like quarter past, half past and quarter to.
Why it matters
Analog clocks are still everywhere, in classrooms, on walls and on watches, and reading them is part of being independent. More than that, the clock face is a circular number line that combines two scales at once: the hours and the minutes. Reading it well takes careful attention.
Telling time to five minutes is a natural use of skip counting by 5s and prepares children for reading time to the minute and working out elapsed time in third grade, such as how long until lunch. It also gives a picture for fractions of an hour: half past and quarter past show halves and quarters of a circle.
Common mistakes
- Reading the number the minute hand points to as the minutes, so the hand on the 4 becomes 4 minutes instead of 20. Practice counting by 5s around the face, touching each number.
- Reading the hour hand as the next hour too soon. At 7:50, the hour hand is almost on the 8, and many children say 8:50. Point out that until the minute hand gets back to the 12, it is still the 7 o’clock hour.
- Mixing up the two hands. The short hand shows the hour, the long hand shows the minutes. Calling them the "hour hand" and the "minute hand" every time helps.
- Writing times like 7:5 instead of 7:05. Show that minutes always get two digits on a digital clock.
How to help at home
- Keep an analog clock where your child can see it, and ask for the time at natural moments: before a show, before dinner, at bedtime.
- Make a paper plate clock with moving hands. Say a time and have your child set it, then switch roles.
- Write the minutes (0, 5, 10, up to 55) around the outside of the clock face for a while, then take the helper labels away when your child is ready.
- Connect clock times to schedules: "Practice starts at 4:15. Show me where the hands will be."
Worked examples
These are real questions from the Tutorsaurus telling time to five minutes practice, with the answers worked out.
Example 1
What time is it?
Choices: 11:10, 11:15, 3:55, 11:20
Answer: 11:15. The long hand points to 3, which means 15 minutes. The short hand is past 11. It is 11:15.
Example 2
What time is it?
Choices: 5:35, 7:25, 6:35, 5:30
Answer: 5:35. The long hand points to 7, which means 35 minutes. The short hand is past 5. It is 5:35.
Example 3
What time is it?
Choices: 6:45, 9:25, 5:40, 5:45
Answer: 5:45. The long hand points to 9, which means 45 minutes. The short hand is past 5. It is 5:45.