Coin Shop
Run the shop: pay with coins and give the right change.
- Ages 6–8
- Counting coins
- Paying an exact amount
Analog clock for kids
This free analog clock shows your local time right now, with a moving hour hand and minute hand. Switch to Set the time to turn the hands yourself or use the buttons. Show the digital time, the time in words and the minute numbers to match the clock face to how we say it.
The clock shows the time where you are.
How to use the analog clock
Switch to Set the time to turn the hands yourself or use the buttons. Show the digital time, the time in words and the minute numbers to match the clock face to how we say it.
- Watch the clock in Now mode. It shows the time where you are. The short, thick hand is the hour hand, and the long hand is the minute hand.
- Press Set the time to stop the clock and change it yourself.
- Drag the long minute hand around the face, or press +5 minutes and −5 minutes. Press +1 hour to move the hour forward.
- Watch the short hour hand. It moves a little as the minutes pass, and sits right on a number at the hour.
- Switch on Digital, Words and Minutes to see the same time written as numbers, said in words, and counted by fives. In Now mode the digital time also says a.m. or p.m.
What is an analog clock?
An analog clock shows time with hands that point around a face of 12 numbers. The short hour hand tells which hour it is, and the long minute hand shows how many minutes have passed. Each number on the face is 5 minutes for the minute hand, so counting by 5s helps.
Digital clocks show time as numbers, such as 3:30. Children need both. Setting the hands on this clock and reading the digital time next to them builds the link between the two.
Ideas to try at home
- Ask your child to make the time you wake up and the time you eat dinner. Then check the digital time.
- Set 3:00 and say "three o’clock". Add 30 minutes, then say it as "three thirty" or "half past three".
- Show how the hour hand moves: set 4:00, then 4:30, and ask where the short hand is now.
- Turn on Minutes and count by 5s around the face: 5, 10, 15, 20.
- Give a challenge: "Show me the time after school." Let your child choose and explain it.
- Compare the clock here with a real one on the wall or a watch.
What it helps with
- Hour and half hour: reading o’clock and half past on a clock with hands.
- Time to 5 minutes: reading quarter past, quarter to and times like ten past.
- Skip counting: counting around the face by 5s to find the minutes.
Common Core standards that fit this tool, in the standards' own words:
- 1.MD.B.3: Tell and write time in hours and half-hours using analog and digital clocks.
- 2.MD.C.7: Tell and write time from analog and digital clocks to the nearest five minutes, using a.m. and p.m.
Games that use the same idea
Number Path
Help Mathumo cross the stones by stepping on the numbers in order.
- Ages 4–6
- Number order to 20
- Reading numerals
Guides for parents
Ideas for using the analog clock and talking about math away from the screen.
How to read a clock: teaching a child to tell time step by step
How to read a clock and teach it to a child: hour hand first, then half past, quarter past and quarter to, five-minute steps, and analog versus digital.
Skip counting by 2s, 5s and 10s: a parent's guide with a chart
Skip counting means counting in equal jumps. Learn how to teach counting by 10s, 5s and 2s, how to use a hundred chart, and how it leads to multiplication.
More free math tools
100 chart
Color numbers on a 1–100 or 1–120 grid and see the patterns in counting by 2s, 5s and 10s.
- Ages 5–8
- Counting to 100 and 120
Number line
Drop a marker on a line from 0 to 10, 20 or 100, or draw hops to add and take away.
- Ages 5–8
- Number order
Ten frame
Fill one or two ten frames with counters in two colors and see how many more make 10.
- Ages 4–7
- Counting to 10 and 20
Questions about the analog clock
How do you read an analog clock?
First look at the short hour hand to find the hour. Then look at the long minute hand: each number is 5 minutes, so count by 5s from the 12. When the long hand points to 6, it is half past the hour. This clock shows the digital time alongside, so you can check.
What does half past three mean?
Half past three means 3:30. The minute hand points to 6, halfway around the clock, and the hour hand is halfway between 3 and 4. "Three thirty" is the same time, and both ways of saying it are fine.
What age learns to tell time on an analog clock?
In the US, first graders learn to tell time to the hour and half hour, and second graders to the nearest five minutes. Many children begin to notice the clock earlier, around age 5 or 6.
Does this clock show the real time?
Yes. In Now mode it shows the time on your device, with a thin second hand, and the digital time adds a.m. or p.m. Press Set the time to stop it and choose a time yourself. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.