2
The clock and its hands
Learner’s Book 1: Unit 8, pp. 110–112
GoalName the parts of a clock: the numbers, the hour hand and the minute hand.
New words
clock · it shows us the timehour hand · the short handminute hand · the long handhand · the pointer on a clock
Explanation
A clock helps us to know the time. It tells us when to leave for the bus, when to eat and when it is time to sleep. A clock has the numbers 1 to 12 and two hands. The short hand is the hour hand. The long hand is the minute hand. Clocks show hours and minutes. The numbers go round in order, and 12 is at the top.
Worked examples
This clock shows 6 o’clock. The short hand points to 6. The long hand points to 12 at the top.
The hour hand moves slowly. The minute hand moves faster. It goes all the way round the clock in one hour.
A clock has 12 numbers. They go 1, 2, 3 up to 12.
Class activity
Paper clock: draw a big circle on paper and write the numbers 1 to 12 round it (12 at the top, 6 at the bottom). Cut two hands from card: a short one and a long one. Fix them in the middle with a pin. Which hand is the hour hand?
Practice
1
Which hand is longer, the hour hand or the minute hand?
the minute hand
2
Where does the long hand point?
to 12 (the top)
3
Which number does the short hand point to?
11
4
How many numbers are on a clock?
12