Giant Clock for Teaching  Time

I thought a giant clock would be a good tool for teaching children about clocks and time so I designed one for my family. I thought it would be great to get my son moving while learning about the clock and some basics about telling time.  Here is what I created!

I made giant numbers and hands on the computer and cut them out for use with the games described below. The arrows need to be cut out and glued together to your desired length. You may want to print the numbers and hands on tagboard or glue them to something sturdy so they do not shift around or get ripped during the games.

 

Preparing the clock:

• Print and cut out templates
• Make clock hands desirable length
• Enjoy!

   

Preparing the Hand Hats:

• Print and cut templates
• Attach templates to a hat

Clock Games

Create a Clock Face:  Lay out all the clock face pieces in a random order and work together to create a giant clock face.  Try it individually or you can even time how long it takes to complete the job!

Clock Face Mix-Up: Create a clock face, but put some of the numbers in the wrong place and have your child figure out how to fix it.

Missing Parts:  Create a clock face, but leave out certain numbers. Have your child figure out what numbers are missing and where they should go.  Then give them the numbers and have them place them in the right spots.

Minute Hand vs Hour Hand

Teach your child to differentiate between the hour hand and the minute hand with these activities.

Who is Taller? Tell your child that the hour hand is shorter than the minute hand.  Have your child pretend the be the hands on the clock. Have them stretch high and be the minute hand and then squat down to be the hour hand. Try some silly questions (see below) to get them thinking about the length of the two hands.

• Is the hour hand more like a tree or a bush?
• Is the minute hand like a skyscraper or a house?

Who is Faster? Tell your child that the minute hand is faster than the hour hand.  Have your child pretend the be the hands on the clock. Have them march quickly in place to be the minute hand and then march slowly in place to be the hour hand. Try some silly questions (see below) to get them thinking about the speed of the two hands.

• Is the hour hand like a snail or a rabbit?
• Is the minute hand like a train or a bicycle?

Move Like the Hand: Have your child move like an hour hand or a minute hand by saying “HOUR” and “MINUTE” and have them move accordingly. (minute- move fast/hour-move slowly)

Stand Like the Hand: Have your child stand like an hour hand or a minute hand by saying “HOUR” and “MINUTE” and have stand accordingly. (minute-stretch high/hour-squat low)

Hour Hand Games

For the following games, have your child wear the hour hand hat.

Hour Hop: Place the minute hand pointing to the 12 and leave it there for this game.  Call out an o’clock time (4:00, 3:00 etc) and have your child hop on correct number.  

Hop Around:  Starting at 12 have your child hop around the clock while you say, 12:oo, 1:00, 2:00 etc.

Minute Hand Games

For the following games, have your child wear the minute hand hat.

Hop Around by 5s: Do the same as above, but instead of saying the o’clock time, count by 5s around the clock.

Half-Past/Quarter to Hop: For children who are ready for more, say the following and have them hop to the correct place. You control the hour hand.

• half past ___
• ___:30
• quarter past ___
• ___:15
• quarter to ___
• ___:45

Want more activities about clocks and telling time?

• Teacher Mama: O’Clock Cards
• Teacher Mama: A Teaching Clock

Templates Available. Email a request to [email protected]

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