Lesson: Telling Time: AM/PM

Materials Needed: analog clocks (can be made from paper plate or card stock), pencils, Do Now worksheet, IND worksheet, chart on am/pm, and  quiz.

Vocabulary: minute, interval, hour, o'clock, minute hand, hour hand, am, pm, evening, night, midday, and morning

 

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Do Now (5-7min): Students begin this lesson by reviewing how to tell time to the 1 minute interval with a worksheet.

 

Opening (2-3min): Teacher begins by reviewing answers of Do Now, quickly running over to check for understanding. Then the teacher poses the question. How do we know what time of day it is if we just say, ‘11 o’clock?’ am I talking about the morning or the evening?

 

State objective at end of the opening, “Today we are going to focus on how we can tell without looking outside if we are talking about the morning or evening time.  However, I want you all to keep your minds sharp because yesterday we tackled telling time to the minute!” 

 

Direct Instruction (8-10 min): Use the Chart 1 to teach AM and PM. Then ask what the difference between the AM and PM are? What are similar about them? Then show Chart 2 to visually represent AM and PM in a standard day. The chart should illustrate the change in the color of the sky with the time change. 

 

Point out to students how each “time” is represented twice on the chart, so it is important to know if we are talking about AM or PM. How funny would it be if we showed up to lunch at 12 Midnight? Ask the students for other funny scenarios. 

Guided Practice (10 min): Ok, now that we know what AM and PM mean, lets play a little game. The teacher will hold up 5-8 pictures with obvious depictions of the day, some nighttime, some early morning, and some intentionally ambiguous, such as noon. The teacher should be open to a debate between students on whether the picture depicts an AM or PM time. The teacher should also begin to introduce elapsed time during guided practice. Using two of the pictures write the following on the board: 
Independent Practice (10 min): The teacher should then begin independent practice with the worksheet that mimics the guided practice.

Closing (3-5 min):Teacher calls the attention of the students back toward the front of the class to quickly review what AM and PM mean. The teacher also quickly quizzes on telling time to the 1 minute with a demonstration clock.