Clocks for Children

Learning to tell the time is one of landmark moments in a child’s education. Knowing how to read a clock makes them more independent; they can learn to organise their time and recognise the routines in their day.

Ideally, children should learn to read both analogue and digital clocks and there is a huge range of both types available both to help them learn and to brighten their room.

Just as a child learns to read using books with colourful pictures and large words, so they learn telling time easiest by using clocks with bold, readable numbers, and exciting designs. You can buy clocks shaped like animals, fruit and cartoon characters, or clocks with a theme like the zoo, or Disney, or trains. Find a clock that appeals to your child, and you’ll find that they’ll want to look at it, and teaching the time will become part of your routine.

Children start telling the time with the basics – at 4-5, they should be learning how to recognise each o’clock, and then move onto half-past, quarter-past, the nearest 5 minutes and digital time as they grow older. Clocks are available which have the “telling time” values next to each number, so number one has “five past” written next to it, and number 7 has “twenty-five to”. This helps children relate the numbers on the clock to the way we talk about time.

There are many books available to help children learn to tell the time. These books usually come with moveable clocks – so that the child can position the hands in the right place during the story. Clocks like these really help with time telling, as you can move the hands to any position you like – and the child learns best from being able to manipulate the hands by itself.

Having a clock on the wall, though, is a great way to encourage your child to practice telling time. Check the time in the morning, and at meal-times, bathtime and bedtime. Make sure though, that you buy a clock with all the numbers on it; clocks that just show 12, 3, 6, and 9 won’t help your child to learn.

You can find some great items to help kids and toddlers – such as a teething necklace – at Amber Pumpkin.