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Master the clock by learning how to read the hour and minute hands to the nearest five minutes.
Imagine you have a ticket to a magic show that starts at exactly 4:25. If you look at a clock with hands, how will you know it's time to take your seat before the curtain rises?
On an analog clock, the long hand is the minute hand. It has a secret! Even though the clock shows numbers through , the minute hand counts by fives. When the long hand points to the , it actually means minutes have passed. When it points to the , it means minutes. We can skip-count all the way around: , and . When we hit , a brand new hour starts!
Let's find out how many minutes have passed if the big hand is on the . 1. Start at the top (). 2. Jump to the and say "". 3. Jump to the and say "". 4. Jump to the and say "". 5. Jump to the and say "". 6. The time ends in .
Quick Check
If the long minute hand is pointing at the number , how many minutes have passed?
Answer
minutes.
The short hand is the hour hand. It is slower and lazier than the minute hand. As the minutes go by, the hour hand slowly moves between two numbers. Here is the golden rule: If the hour hand is between two numbers, it usually belongs to the smaller number. If the hand is between the and the , it is still -something. It doesn't become o'clock until the hand touches the exactly!
Look at a clock where the short hand is halfway between and , and the long hand is on the . 1. Check the short hand: It is past but not yet . The hour is . 2. Check the long hand: It is on . Count by fives: . 3. Put it together: The time is .
Quick Check
The hour hand is between and . The minute hand is on . What time is it?
Answer
There are hours in a full day, but our clocks only show . This means the hour hand goes around the clock twice! We use AM for the first half of the day (midnight until lunchtime) and PM for the second half (lunchtime until midnight). Think of AM as 'After Midnight' and PM as 'Past Midday' to help you remember!
Imagine you are fast asleep and the clock says . Is it AM or PM? 1. Think: Is it dark outside and way before breakfast? 2. Yes! That means it is the very early morning. 3. The answer is AM. If it were PM, you would likely be at school or playing outside!
If the minute hand is pointing at the , how many minutes is that?
You are eating dinner at . Is this AM or PM?
If the hour hand is between the and the , the hour is .
Review Tomorrow
Tomorrow morning, look at an analog clock and try to count by fives to find the exact minute.
Practice Activity
Draw three circles. Label them like a clock. Draw hands to show your wake-up time, your lunch time, and your bedtime. Label each as AM or PM!