Time | Year 2 Mathematics (Cambridge) PDF Download

Understanding the Clock

The Hands of the Clock

• Long hand (minute hand): Points to the minutes.
• Short hand (hour hand): Points to the hour.

O' Clock

• When the long hand points to 12, it is no minutes.
• Example: If the short hand is at 2 and the long hand is at 12, it is 2 o'clock.

Reading Minutes

Five-Minute Intervals

• Each number on the clock represents 5 minutes for the long hand.
• There are 60 minutes in an hour.

Quarter Past

• When the long hand points to 3, it is 15 minutes past the hour.
• Example: If the short hand is at 4 and the long hand is at 3, it is 4:15 or quarter past 4.

Half Past

• When the long hand points to 6, it is 30 minutes past the hour.
• Example: If the short hand is at 7 and the long hand is at 6, it is 7:30 or half past 7.

Quarter To

• When the long hand points to 9, it is 45 minutes past the hour.
• Example: If the short hand is at 10 and the long hand is at 9, it is 10:45 or quarter to 11 (because in 15 minutes, it will be 11 o'clock).

More Accurate Time

Five-Minute Intervals

We can be more accurate by using 5-minute intervals:

• 5 minutes past the hour
• 10 minutes past the hour
• 20 minutes past the hour
• 25 minutes past the hour

To the Hour

After the half-hour mark, we count minutes to the next hour:

• 25 minutes to the hour
• 20 minutes to the hour
• 10 minutes to the hour
• 5 minutes to the hour

Examples

Telling the Time Examples

• If the short hand is at 5 and the long hand is at 1, it is 5:05 or 5 minutes past 5.
• If the short hand is at 3 and the long hand is at 2, it is 3:10 or 10 minutes past 3.
• If the short hand is at 8 and the long hand is at 4, it is 8:20 or 20 minutes past 8.
• If the short hand is at 1 and the long hand is at 7, it is 1:35 or 25 minutes to 2.
• If the short hand is at 9 and the long hand is at 8, it is 9:40 or 20 minutes to 10.
• If the short hand is at 11 and the long hand is at 10, it is 11:50 or 10 minutes to 12.

Conclusion

Now you know how to tell the time more accurately using both minutes past the hour and minutes to the hour.