Learning to Tell Time with a Rock Clock Mystery

Learning to tell time on analog clock takes a lot of practice for young learners. This activity gets children building and interacting with the placement of numbers on a clock as well as moving the hands around to set the time.

Try your hand at building this rock clock and creating short time stories to solve which comes right out of the book 100 Fun & Easy Learning Games for Kids (affiliate)!

Kim of The Educators Spin On it and one of the authors, was kind enough to send me a copy so I could check it out for myself. I was NOT disappointed. I’ve known Kim online for quite some time and she produces such great ideas on her site The Educators Spin On It. I wouldn’t expect anything less.

Be sure to check out our other fun family-friendly kid activities and crafts!

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Learning To Tell Time Has Never Been So Much Fun! Fun craft project and additional learn to tell time ideas!

This activity has been reprinted with express permission from the publisher from the book 100 FUN & EASY LEARNING GAMES FOR KIDS. This post contains affiliate links.

Learning to Tell Time with a Rock Clock Mystery

Growing up, we always had an old-fashioned kitchen clock by the family table. I loved the sound of the pendulum clicking back and forth. So soothing and a sign of home.

I know have a gorgeous kitchen clock right by our family table. Because we have an open floor plan, you can see it from the kitchen, the eating area and the TV room. The only problem? My kids can’t read it!

But this issue will be solved soon enough. This fun project will help my children with learning to tell time while also having fun and working on solving time story problems.

Rock Clock 1

Materials

  • 12 rocks
  • Paint
  • 2 sticks
Rock Clock 2

Directions to Make

  1. Paint the rocks. (Note: If you have the book, you can paint the numbers on the back of the rocks from Pattern Snake in a Sack on page 107!)
  2. Paint a number 1 to 12 on each rock. Allow to dry overnight. (Note: The rocks from Rock Number Hunt on page 100 can also be used for this game.)
Rock Clock 3

Directions to Play

  1. Use the rocks to build a clock in the shape of a circle on a flat surface.
  2. Set the sticks in the middle as the hour and minute hands.
  3. One child tells a story with a time problem.

Sample Question:  Sam went to the park at 8:00. He stayed for 1 hour and then went home. What time did he go home?

  1. The player to the right uses the hands of the rock clock to show the answer.
  2. If correct, then he gets to make up a time story. If incorrect, he must change the hands on the clock to show the correct time before telling the next story.

Game Variations

Try out these variations to continue learning how to tell time and keep the fun going!

  • Set the hour and minute hands on the clock. Act out something you would typically do at that time of day.
  • Have one player call out a time and another player shows that time on the rock clock.
  • Mix the rocks and race to rebuild the rock clock.

100 FUN & EASY LEARNING GAMES FOR KIDS: TEACH READING, WRITING, MATH AND MORE WITH FUN ACTIVITIES

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From two experienced educators and moms, 100 Fun & Easy Learning Games for Kids prepares your children to thrive in school and life the fun way by using guided play at home to teach important learning topics―reading, writing, math, science, art, music and global studies.

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Turn off the TV and beat boredom blues with these clever activities that are quick and easy to set up with common household materials. The huge variety of activities means you can choose from high-energy group games full of laughter and delight, or quiet activities that kids can complete on their own.

100 Fun & Easy Learning Games for Kids: Teach Reading, Writing, Math and More With Fun Activities100 Fun & Easy Learning Games for Kids: Teach Reading, Writing, Math and More With Fun Activities100 Fun & Easy Learning Games for Kids: Teach Reading, Writing, Math and More With Fun Activities

 

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    8 Comments

    1. Love this rock clock idea for so many reasons! First of all, they rhyme. Secondly, the rocks can be reused as a number line and it would be fun to “rock” jump the line. So many possibilities!

      1. Thanks, Melissa! It’s a fun project for sure! And I’m just in love with this book — loads of great ideas!

    2. I love this activity, crafting and learning at the same time.
      Voted as my favourite so it will be featured on this week’s Turn It Up Tuesday.
      Thanks so much for sharing this with us.

      1. Thanks! It’s such a fun project and a great way to learn the time (which was a difficult one in our family!)

    3. What a fun learning activity! Thank you so much for participating in the Get It Together Link Party this week. We hope to see you again on Monday! 🙂

    4. This is such a fantastic idea! My daughter will love both the painting and the number clock part!

    5. Wow! My kids are going to love this! Thank you for stopping by the Learn & Play Link Up. This post is featured on Christian Montessori Network this week.

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