Clock reading practice
Look at the clock, type the time you read and press Check. Start with whole hours and work up to single minutes. A running score shows how many you got right first time. Everything runs in your browser.
Runs in your browser: nothing you enter is sent anywhere.
How to use it
- Choose a level and press Next clock for a new random time.
- Read the clock and type the time, for example 4:25.
- Press Check. Use Show answer if you are stuck, then try another clock.
How it works
The clock is drawn from the time: the minute hand turns 6 degrees per minute, and the hour hand turns 30 degrees per hour plus 0.5 degrees per minute. Random times are picked from the minutes allowed by the level: only 0 for whole hours, 0 and 30 for half hours, multiples of 15 for quarter hours, multiples of 5 for five minutes and any of 0 to 59 for the last level.
Worked example
At 10:10 the hour hand is at 10 × 30 + 10 × 0.5 = 305 degrees and the minute hand at 10 × 6 = 60 degrees, so the long hand points at the 2. Typing 10:10, 10.10 or 1010 is marked correct.
Tips
- Read the short hand first to get the hour, then the long hand for the minutes.
- Count in fives around the face: the 1 is 5, the 2 is 10 and so on.
- Practise a few clocks each day rather than many at once.
Frequently asked questions
How do I read an analog clock?
The short hand shows the hour and the long hand shows the minutes. When the long hand points at the 12 it is “o’clock”; at the 6 it is half past. Each number on the face is five minutes for the long hand, so the 3 means 15 minutes and the 9 means 45.
What times can I type?
Use hours and minutes with a colon, a dot or a space (3:45, 3.45, 3 45), or the digits together (345). Typing only the hour, such as 3, means 3:00. A 24-hour time like 15:45 is accepted and counted as 3:45 because a clock face has only 12 hours.
How is the score counted?
Each clock counts once: the first answer you check, or Show answer, adds one to the total. Only a correct first check adds a point to your right answers. The score restarts when you reload the page.
Which level should a beginner start with?
This is a rule of thumb: begin with “On the hour”, then half hours, quarter hours, five-minute steps and finally every minute. Hiding the numbers makes it harder once the face is familiar.
Does the hour hand move between numbers?
Yes. The hour hand moves half a degree each minute, so at 3:30 it sits halfway between the 3 and the 4, just like on a real clock.