What does this objective mean?
This objective requires children to understand the value of seconds, minutes and hours and to be able to compare them. It also requires children to be able to use time-related vocabulary (see above).
How might it be assessed in the 7+?
Children may be asked to order lengths of time. For example:
Put these lengths of time in order from the shortest to the longest:
3 hours 20 minutes 1 day 1 hour
Children may be tested on their knowledge of time-related vocabulary. For example:
Draw lines to show what time Fred does each activity:
Noon Fred wakes up
7am Fred is asleep
4pm Fred has lunch
Midnight Fred finishes school
How do I teach this to my child?
A good exercise for teaching time terminology is to draw a time-graph of a typical day. Start with midnight at one side of the page and midnight at the other. With your child, plot different points in the day, adding activities or events to make it relevant to your child (e.g. in the middle of your graph, you may plot ‘noon – eat lunch’/ midnight – in bed). Add as much time vocabulary as you can to the map.
How can we practice this?
This can be built into your daily routine. As you go through the day, point out to your child the time and ensure you use the correct language (e.g. ‘look it’s 7pm- that means it’s bath time’/ ‘let’s set your alarm for 7am – that’s what time we get up for school).
