Learn to tell time on an analog clock
Read the clock or set the hands, across four levels
A big clock on screen and two ways to play. In "Read the clock" the hands show a time and you pick it from three options. In "Set the time" it works the other way round: the game says a time and you drag the hands until the clock shows it. The short hand and the hour digit share a colour, and the long hand shares its own with the minutes, so it is clear at a glance which hand you read where.
The four levels add minutes step by step, and each one includes the ones before it: o’clock, half past, quarters, and five-minute intervals. The clock adds its own help — level three marks the quarters and level four shows the ring with 5, 10, 15. There is nothing to configure.
What the game practises
- Telling the hour hand from the minute hand, which is the most common mix-up at the start.
- Reading a full time: first the number the short hand has passed, then the minutes.
- Connecting the analog clock with the digital one, because the options are shown as 7:30.
- Moving the hands and seeing the short one advance on its own as the long one goes round, like a real clock.
- Half hours, quarters and five-minute intervals, one level at a time.
The game runs on desktop, tablet and phone, and can be projected on a classroom whiteboard. No sign-up and no download.
Frequently asked questions
What age is it for?
The first level uses only o’clock times, with the long hand always on 12, and usually works from around age 4 or 5. Quarters and five-minute intervals suit early primary school.
Can it be played without sound?
Yes. The prompt is spoken and also shown on screen, so the game works with the sound off.
How do you read a clock with hands?
The short hand gives the hour: you read the number it has already passed, not the one ahead. The long hand gives the minutes, counting in fives from the 12. When the long hand is on the 6, it is half past.
Does it teach "quarter to"?
The game uses the digital reading, the same one on the buttons: 8:45 is read "eight forty-five". "Quarter to nine" is another way of saying that same time and can be added out loud while playing.
Is anything to install?
No. It runs in the browser, it is free and it does not ask you to create an account.
Telling Time is one of the 4 math games on Little Kids Games.
