This grade 2 time lesson explains telling time to five minutes in one printable page, with definitions, a method and a worked example.
To tell time on an analog clock, look at the short hour hand for the hour, then count by fives around the clock to read the minutes with the long minute hand. Write the time like 7:35. Add a.m. for times from midnight to noon and p.m. for times from noon to midnight.
Grade 2 Time Lesson: key facts
- The short hand is the hour hand. The long hand is the minute hand.
- Each number on the clock is 5 more minutes, so count by fives.
- Minute hand on 12, 3, 6, or 9 means 0, 15, 30, or 45 minutes.
- Write minutes with two digits, like 7:05.
- a.m. is midnight to noon. p.m. is noon to midnight.
What are the parts of an analog clock?
An analog clock has a round face with the numbers 1 to 12. It has two hands. The short hand is the hour hand. The long hand is the minute hand.
How do you read the minutes?
The minute hand moves around the clock once every hour. Each number on the clock stands for 5 minutes. Count by fives to read the minutes: the 1 is 5 minutes, the 2 is 10 minutes, and the 3 is 15 minutes.
Minute hand on the 12 means o’clock (0 minutes). On the 3 it is 15 minutes after the hour. On the 6 it is 30 minutes after the hour. On the 9 it is 45 minutes after the hour.
How do you write the time on a digital clock?
A digital clock shows numbers. The number before the colon is the hour. The numbers after the colon are the minutes. The time 7:05 means 7 hours and 5 minutes. A zero before the 5 keeps the minutes in two places.
What do a.m. and p.m. mean?
A day has 24 hours, and a clock shows 12 of them at a time. So every time happens twice a day. We write a.m. for the time from midnight to noon. We write p.m. for the time from noon to midnight. Breakfast at 7:30 is 7:30 a.m. Dinner at 6:30 is 6:30 p.m.
How do you tell the time step by step?
- Look at the short hour hand. Say the number it has just passed.
- Look at the long minute hand. Count by fives to the number it points to.
- Write the hour, a colon, and the minutes with two digits.
- Add a.m. or p.m. when the story tells the part of the day.
Example. The hour hand is between 4 and 5, so the hour is 4. The minute hand is on 7. Count by fives: 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35. The time is 4:35. If this is after school, write 4:35 p.m.
Telling Time to Five Minutes: frequently asked questions
How do you tell time to the nearest five minutes?
Count by fives as you go around the clock to the number the minute hand points to. The 4 means 20 minutes. Then read the hour from the short hand.
Which hand is the hour hand?
The short hand is the hour hand. The long hand is the minute hand. The hour hand moves slowly, and the minute hand moves around once an hour.
What does a.m. mean?
The letters a.m. mark the time from midnight until noon. Breakfast at 7:30 is 7:30 a.m.
What does p.m. mean?
The letters p.m. mark the time from noon until midnight. A movie at 6:30 in the evening is 6:30 p.m.
Why do we write 7:05 and not 7:5?
Minutes are always written with two digits. The 0 holds the tens place, so 7:05 means 7 hours and 5 minutes.
How to use this grade 2 time lesson
Use this grade 2 time lesson before the worksheet, then check what you learned with the quiz.
See every chapter on the Grade 2 math page.
