Telling Time to the Minute

🎯 What Will We Learn Today?

What time is it right now? Today we'll learn how to tell time on an analog clock — all the way to the exact minute!

📚 The Parts of a Clock

An analog clock has:

Hour hand（short and thick）— tells the hour

Minute hand（long and thin）— tells the minutes

Numbers 1 through 12 around the edge

60 little tick marks — one for each minute

🕐 How to Read the Hour

First, look at the short hour hand:

If it's between two numbers, the hour is the smaller number

- Between 3 and 4 → it's 3-something
- Between 12 and 1 → it's 12-something

If it's exactly on a number, that's the hour

🕑 How to Read the Minutes

Now look at the long minute hand and count by 5s:

| Minute hand at | Minutes |
|---------------|---------|
| 1 | 5 minutes |
| 2 | 10 minutes |
| 3 | 15 minutes |
| 4 | 20 minutes |
| 5 | 25 minutes |
| 6 | 30 minutes（half past） |
| 7 | 35 minutes |
| 8 | 40 minutes |
| 9 | 45 minutes（quarter to） |
| 10 | 50 minutes |
| 11 | 55 minutes |
| 12 | 00 or 60（o'clock） |

🎮 Exact Minutes

Between the big numbers, each tiny tick mark = 1 minute. Count from the last big number!

Example: Hour hand between 2 and 3, minute hand at 4 = 2:20

Example: Hour hand near 10, minute hand at 9 = 10:45 or "quarter to 11"

💡 Key Time Words

O'clock — minute hand at 12（exactly on the hour）

Half past — minute hand at 6（30 minutes past）

Quarter past — minute hand at 3（15 minutes past）

Quarter to — minute hand at 9（45 minutes past, or 15 to the next hour）

📝 Practice Problems

Hour hand at 3, minute hand at 12. What time?

Hour hand between 7 and 8, minute hand at 6. What time?

Draw a clock showing 9:15.

How many minutes are in one hour?

If lunch is at 12:00 and it's 11:35 now, how many minutes until lunch?

🎮 Play a Game!

Practice math and time with Tugboat Addition!