Lesson 11
Tell Time with Halves and Quarters
Warm-up: What Do You Know About Ways to Tell Time? (10 minutes)
Narrative
The purpose of this What Do You Know About ____? is to invite students to share what they know about telling time. Listen for the words and phrases students use that reveal what they know about the tools used to measure and display time (digital and analog clocks), the features of these tools (clock hands), the units used to discuss time (hours, minutes), and common phrases used to talk about time (o’clock, half past). Record these words and phrases on chart paper and add to the chart throughout the section.
During the synthesis, encourage students to describe ways to create illustrations or diagrams of words and phrases they use to describe how time is represented using clocks. For example, encourage students to describe how to draw a clock face and label minute and hour hands. Label a digital representation of time to indicate how hours and minutes are represented.
Required Materials
Materials to Gather
Launch
- “What do you know about ways to tell time?”
- 1 minute: quiet think time
Activity
- 2 minutes: partner discussion
- Circulate, listen for, and collect the language students use to describe clocks and other time measurement tools, units for measuring time, and common words and phrases. Listen for: clock, hour, minute, hour hand, minute hand, o’clock, half past.
- Record students’ words and phrases on a visual display and update it throughout the lesson.
- “What words do you use to talk about time?”
- Record responses.
Student Facing
What do you know about ways to tell time? What words do you use to talk about time?
Student Response
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Activity Synthesis
- “Are there any other words or phrases that are important to include on our display?”
- As students share responses, update the display, by adding (or replacing) language, diagrams, or annotations.
- Remind students to borrow language from the display as needed.
Activity 1: Tell Time to the Hour and Half-hour (15 minutes)
Narrative
The purpose of this activity is for students to revisit the conventions of telling time learned in grade 1. Students discuss the difference between the hour and minute hands as well as where each hand will be on the clock when showing time to the hour or half-hour. They are reminded that the hour hand moves as the minute hand moves around the circle.
Supports accessibility for: Memory, Attention
Required Preparation
- Gather an analog clock (large wall clock or a Judy clock) or video of an analog clock that can be used to demonstrate the movement of the hour hand as the minute hand moves round the clock face in the activity synthesis. Video: https://vimeo.com/454805326
Launch
- Groups of 2
Activity
- “You are going to look at some analog clocks and think about how they work to show different times.”
- As needed, review how to read time presented in a digital format.
- 5 minutes: partner work time
- When representing 1:30, monitor for students who:
- draw the hour hand pointing to the 1
- draw the hour hand pointing between 1 and 2
Student Facing
-
Circle the clock that shows 4 o’clock.
Why doesn’t the other clock show 4 o’clock?
-
Circle the clock that shows half past 7.
Why doesn’t the other clock show half past 7?
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Draw the hands on the clock to show 10:00.
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Draw the hands on the clock to show 1:30.
Student Response
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Advancing Student Thinking
- “What is the same and different between these two clocks?”
- “How does the hour hand show half past 7? How does the minute hand show half past 7?”
Activity Synthesis
- Display two student clocks for 1:30 or draw and label clocks like these images:
Tyler
Mai
- “Tyler and Mai both draw hands on the clock to show 1:30. Which clock shows 1:30? Explain.” (Tyler’s clock shows 1:30 because he drew the hour hand halfway between the 1 and the 2. The minute hand points to 6. It has traveled halfway around the clock, so the hour hand has traveled halfway to the next hour.)
- If possible, demonstrate the movement of both hands with a Judy Clock or use the demonstration video.
Activity 2: Card Sort: Halves and Quarters (20 minutes)
Narrative
The purpose of this activity is for students to make connections between circles that are partitioned into halves and fourths and telling time with halves and quarters of the clock. Students use their understanding of halves and quarters of circles to match clock faces, partitioned circles, and the phrases “quarter past,” “half past,” and “quarter till” (MP7).
Advances: Speaking, Conversing
Required Materials
Materials to Copy
- Halves and Quarters Clock Sort
Required Preparation
- Create a set of cards from the blackline master for each group of 2.
Launch
- Groups of 2
- Give each group a set of cards.
- “Sometimes we talk about time using words like half and quarter to talk about the time to the hour. Use what you know about partitioning circles into halves and quarters to match the cards.”
- “Each set of cards you make should include a clock face, a partitioned circle, and a phrase.”
- 6 minutes: partner work time
- Monitor for students who:
- explain the clock and circle that show a quarter past the hour
- reason that quarter till might mean 1 quarter until the next hour
- use the phrases with the hour shown on the clock face (for example, Clock C as a quarter past 2)
- Invite previously identified students to share their matches. Add any phrases to the chart from the warm-up.
Activity
- “Write the time shown on each clock using the words half past, quarter past, or quarter till.”
- 3 minutes: independent work time
- 2 minutes: partner discussion
Student Facing
-
Find matching sets of cards. Each set should have 3 cards. Be prepared to explain why they match.
- Write the time shown on each clock using the words half past, quarter past, or quarter till.
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Student Response
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Advancing Student Thinking
- “How could you use the cards you sorted to help you check the phrases you chose for telling the time?”
Activity Synthesis
- Display the clock faces for 5:15, 5:30, and 5:45.
- “What times do these clocks show?”
- Share and record responses. (quarter past 5, half past 5, quarter till 6)
- “Look at the hour hand on these 3 clocks. What do you notice about how it moves as the minute hand moves?” (The hour hand moves away from the 5 and closer to the 6.)
- “While the minute hand moves around the whole clock, the hour hand moves from one number to the next. At quarter past, the hour hand has moved a little past one number and toward the next number. At half past, the hour hand is halfway to the next number, and at quarter till, the hour hand is getting close to the next number.”
Lesson Synthesis
Lesson Synthesis
“Today we practiced reading analog clocks and using phrases to tell the time.”
Display the chart created in the warm-up.
“Are there any new words or phrases that are important to include on our display?” (We should add quarter past and quarter till.).
“Describe how you can tell if a clock shows a quarter past or a quarter till. Use your shape cards to help explain if it helps.”
Cool-down: Tell Time with Halves and Quarters (5 minutes)
Cool-Down
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