Telling Time: Read It and Set It

Features

• A clock you can drag — grab whichever hand is nearest, as on a real clock
• The hour hand travels with the minute hand (half past three puts it between 3 and 4)
• Digital form plus the words, in English, Chinese or Japanese
• Both hand angles are listed so you can check them yourself
• One line of explanation that changes with the minute
• Read-the-clock practice: a score, marked straight away
• Set-the-clock practice: the correct reading is shown after you check
• Four levels: whole and half hours, quarter hours, five minutes, single minutes
• − / + buttons for each hand when dragging is awkward
• Toggle minute ticks, numbers 1–12, an inner 13–24 ring, the second hand and the 24-hour clock
• A “Now” button that sets the clock to the current time

How to use

1. Start in free play and drag the hands to see how the reading changes
2. Switch to read-the-clock practice, read the face, pick the time and check
3. Switch to set-the-clock practice and move the hands to match the time given
4. Begin at whole and half hours and work down a level at a time
5. Turn on the inner 13–24 ring and the 24-hour clock to teach 24-hour time

FAQ

Why is the hour hand not on the 3 at half past three?

Because the hour hand moves continuously rather than jumping once an hour. It travels 0.5° every minute (30° an hour divided by 60), so by the half hour it is exactly halfway — between the 3 and the 4, at 105°. Seeing that is what makes clock reading click.

Why is the 24-hour reading different from the 12-hour one?

Because they are used differently. The 12-hour form is how people speak. The 24-hour form belongs on timetables and in announcements: English says “fifteen hundred” and “fifteen forty-five” — never “fifteen o’clock”.

What are past and to?

English speech splits the hour at the half: up to 30 minutes you count past (twenty past three), beyond that you count back from the next hour (twenty to four). That only applies on exact five-minute steps; 3:47 is simply “three forty-seven”.

Does dragging the hour hand change the minutes?

No. Dragging the hour hand sets the hour only, and dragging the minute hand sets the minute only. But where the hour hand is drawn always follows the minute — which is why it slides along as you turn the minute hand, exactly as on a real clock.

Can I practise just one kind of question?

Yes. The second hand and the 24-hour clock can be left off, and the difficulty can be fixed at one level, so a child only meets that kind of question.