Friday, June 23, 2017

Interactive Digital Flip Clocks for Children

I made a digital flip clock freebie that you can grab at the end of this post.  Your students will have a blast with them!  These interactive clocks can be used at the beginning of your telling time unit to spark student interest.

These interactive flip clocks will be a hit with students!  Make them at the start of a telling time unit to spark student enthusiasm.  Use them when students are learning to tell time to the hours or the minutes.  The hours and the minutes move when the dials are pulled.  Students can decorate the frames of the clocks to personalize them.  These clocks are easy to assemble.  Each one takes less than five minutes to make.  Digital flip clocks date back to the 1970's!  Its' a "RETRO-RESOURCE"!

Children can pull the hours dial or the minutes dial to change the time.  They're reminiscent of the seventies style digital clocks making this a "Retro-Resource".   Ha!  Ha!

  

Here are three ideas for using them:

1.  Say a time and have students reproduce the time with their clocks.
2.  Show a time on an analog clock and have students create the matching time on their digital clock.
3.  Have students use them to solve time elapsed story problems.


Here's a VIDEO demonstration of how to assemble the retro flip clocks.

Or read the written directions here:

Print the desired clock on card-stock paper.  Allow the children to decorate the frames of their clocks with crayons or markers to personalize them.  (This is the only part that young children can complete on their own.)  Collect the colored clock pages.  Cut the pieces out.  Make slits on the broken lines of the clock.  Tape the two strips that are for the hours together where indicated.  Tape the minutes strip where indicated.  Push the strips into the appropriate slits on the clocks.  Loop the strips and tape together.

These interactive flip clocks will be a hit with students!  Make them at the start of a telling time unit to spark student enthusiasm.  Use them when students are learning to tell time to the hours or the minutes.  The hours and the minutes move when the dials are pulled.  Students can decorate the frames of the clocks to personalize them.  These clocks are easy to assemble.  Each one takes less than five minutes to make.  Digital flip clocks date back to the 1970's!  Its' a "RETRO-RESOURCE"!


Click on the image shown below to get the freebieLeave a comment on this post to let me know how your clocks turned out! 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B00tOHex1LTlVmx5elpESS1OVWs/view?usp=sharing&resourcekey=0-7ROLdakzio6sl_r7FDR5Zg


The Common Core State Standards require first graders to learn time to the hours and half hours.  I created two additional clocks for hours and half hours with the minutes fixed (not moveable) so the focus would be on moving time to the hours exclusively.  You can see those on the yellow and orange clocks in the photo above with the times set at 5:30 and 3:00 respectivelySome first graders don't know their own strength!  They'll accidentally rip their clocks when flipping the times.  Keep a few extra clocks on hand in case that happens.

My next post, I'll share some practical ways to probe children to determine their current ability to interpret the time on a clock.  I'm also planning to share how teaching time can be broken down into small pieces.  I was planning to do that in this post but will postpone until next time. 

These interactive flip clocks will be a hit with students!  Make them at the start of a telling time unit to spark student enthusiasm.  Use them when students are learning to tell time to the hours or the minutes.  The hours and the minutes move when the dials are pulled.  Students can decorate the frames of the clocks to personalize them.  These clocks are easy to assemble.  Each one takes less than five minutes to make.  Digital flip clocks date back to the 1970's!  Its' a "RETRO-RESOURCE"!





That's it for now!

Molly




Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Numeracy Skills (and other skills) Required to Learn to Tell Time

Hello readers!  I know it's summer break so I thought I'd offer you a few insights about learning to tell time as you prepare for the new school year.  Ha! Ha!  This is a long post and I promise the next post will be shorter!

I've seen children whiz through telling time and I've also seen the other end of it where children had difficulty.  One thing that I've learned is that there is often an underlying concept that a child is missing which causes him/her to struggle with learning to tell time.  Here are a few concepts and skills that need to be mastered in order for children to have success with telling time to the hours and half-hours.



Numeral Recognition and Numeral Sequencing

The numerals on an analog clock are from one to twelve.  One of the most basic skills is to recognize numerals from one to twelve.  It is impossible for a first grader to tell time to the hour without being able to recognize these numerals.  Students will also need to be able to sequence numerals from one to twelve.  A daily sequencing activity will build this skill.  Click the photo shown below and grab the set of numeral cards.  Print one page for every three students.  (Printing on card-stock paper will make them more durable for repeated use.)


Start by having the children sequence the numerals from left to right.



Then have the children sequence the numeral cards in a circular, clockwise fashion.



This is a five minute activity and can be done as a warm up at the beginning of a math lesson that is not associated with telling time.  After several days, provide the children with two straws of different lengths to represent the hour hand and the minute hand on an analog clock.  Have a DAILY routine of "Constructing a Clock".  The numeral cards and straws can easily be stored in plastic baggies for repeated use.  


The children can glue the numeral cards on a large paper circle when you begin your unit on telling time.  Use a marker to put a dot in the center of the paper circle.  Redistribute the straws and have the children display various times on their "clocks" by pointing the straws to the appropriate numerals with one end of each straw touching the dot that was made in the center of the paper.

Students glue the numerals on their clocks. The straws (the clock hands) remain unfastened to the clock.  Students show various times on the clock by pointing each "straw" to the numeral to match the time called out by the teacher.


There's more to telling time than meets the eyeRead on to learn what else is required before children can tell time to the hours and half-hours.  Find out what clocks you should avoid using!

Wednesday, June 7, 2017

May I Dab the Free Space?

"May I dab (do) the free space?" she asked.  I don't know what it is about young children and "The Free Space" but they LOVE the idea of having it on their bingo sheets!  

It was the first time this little gal used a paint dabber on a bingo game.  Boy was she thrilled to have that dabber in her hands!

Learning to tell time to the hours and half hours is a first grade math standard in many school districts throughout the United States.  Children are required to read times on both an analog clock as well as a digital clock.  These telling time bingo games include every time for hours and half hours.  Use a face clock or teacher demonstration clock to show times in analog form.  Then have your students find the corresponding time in digital form on their bingo sheets.

As you will see in the video segment, she dabs the SAME spot multiple times until I mention to her that she can dab the spot just once.  

Learning to tell time to the hours and half hours is a first grade math standard in many school districts throughout the United States.  Children are required to read times on both an analog clock as well as a digital clock.  These telling time bingo games include every time for hours and half hours.  Use a face clock or teacher demonstration clock to show times in analog form.  Then have your students find the corresponding time in digital form on their bingo sheets.
She's a quick study and does the remainder of the activity with a single dab in each spot!

Learning to tell time to the hours and half hours is a first grade math standard in many school districts throughout the United States.  Children are required to read times on both an analog clock as well as a digital clock.  These telling time bingo games include every time for hours and half hours.  Use a face clock or teacher demonstration clock to show times in analog form.  Then have your students find the corresponding time in digital form on their bingo sheets.

This was the first time we used my Telling Time Bingo sheets.  I wanted to see whether or not she could identify the digital style numeric font that I used in creating the game.  This is an essential skill before introducing the analog clocks with the game. She was an instant whiz at it!


The next time we use the Telling Time Bingo sheets we'll play it as a bingo game instead of using it as a following directions activity.  We'll also use an analog clock to put telling time to the hours and half hours into practice.  I might display at time such as 3:30 on an analog clock (face clock) and ask her to find the corresponding time in digital form on her bingo sheet.  This way, she gets exposure to both digital and analog times in the same sitting.

Learning to tell time to the hours and half hours is a first grade math standard in many school districts throughout the United States.  Children are required to read times on both an analog clock as well as a digital clock.  These telling time bingo games include every time for hours and half hours.  Use a face clock or teacher demonstration clock to show times in analog form.  Then have your students find the corresponding time in digital form on their bingo sheets.

Since I tested her (while video taping), I know she can recognize the digital times.  She also has gained confidence about using the digital time bingo sheets which will prepare her for the next level - time elapsed problem solving.

Learning to tell time to the hours and half hours is a first grade math standard in many school districts throughout the United States.  Children are required to read times on both an analog clock as well as a digital clock.  These telling time bingo games include every time for hours and half hours.  Use a face clock or teacher demonstration clock to show times in analog form.  Then have your students find the corresponding time in digital form on their bingo sheets.

I have several varieties of telling time bingo games.  If your are interested, click on any image shown below to view them at my shop.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/time-to-the-hour-and-half-hour-1045289

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Telling-Time-for-15-Minutes-Before-and-15-Mnutes-After-the-Hour-1049803

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/telling-time-within-15-minute-increments-Bundle-Black-and-White-1050141

Telling time to the hours and half hours is a first grade math standard.  When students are in second grade, they are required tell time in five minute increments.  It's a big jump from reading time by the hours and half hours to reading times for every five minutes.  Offering a transitional lesson with times at the quarter hours can bridge the gap between the two standardsBelow are some color versions of the same games.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Telling-Time-to-the-Hour-and-Half-Hour-1045334

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Tell-Time-for-Quarter-Past-and-Quarter-Before-the-Hours-1045369

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Telling-Time-Within-15-Minute-Increments-1048208

That's all for now!

Molly