Measurement and Data

Telling the time

Read o'clock and half past times on a clock with hands.

A clock has two hands. The short one tells you the hour and the long one tells you the minutes.

When the long hand points straight up at 12, it is an o'clock time. When it points straight down at 6, half an hour has gone by.

Worked example

Short hand on 3, long hand on 12. What time is it?

  1. The long hand is on 12, so no minutes have gone by yet.

    That makes it an o'clock time.

Try it together

Read this clock together.

Long hand on 6. Short hand between 8 and 9.

    1.The long hand on 6 means half an hour has gone. How many minutes is that?

    Watch out

    At half past, the short hand is not on a number. It sits between the hour just gone and the next one.

    Have a go

    Have a go. Long hand on 12, short hand on 7. What time is it?

    Ready to practice?

    Eight questions on what you have just read. Nothing is timed, and you can play as many times as you like.

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