Teens not knowing how to tell time?

Question

Ok, to start off, I am not against homeschooling at all. I am looking into homeschooling my daughter as well. However, I have a family member who homeschools her children and I am worried about their education. They are 12 and 13 years old and still do not know how to read a regular clock with hands. They only know how to tell time on a digital clock. I consider knowing how to read a clock a very important life skill, and am disturbed by this. They were over at my house and I asked them what time it was and they were running all around looking for a digital clock. This is how I first found out. I believe the mother feels that as long as they can work with digital clocks it is fine. However, there may be times in their lives when a digital clock is unavailable. Shouldn't this be something mandatory to teach your child?

Answer 1

I'm nearly eighteen, and even though I learned how to read an analogue clock as a child, I doubt I'd be able to if you put one in front of me right now. I know the hours of course, but I'd have to think about it a bit to figure out the minutes. My mom is in her fifties and she is the same way. Digital clocks are just more common today, so people just fall into the habit of reading them and out of reading analogue. I do think it's an important skill to have, but I don't think it's something that should be made mandatory in any way. There are still public schools that do not teach this skill, and I know lots of public schoolers who are in highschool and still can't do it. I think if they find situations where they need to know how to read one, they will learn how. Things like that come from experience.  

Answer 2

Although I think that being able to read an analog clock is an important skill, the truth is it is something that anyone of any age can learn.  Matter of fact, the older you are, most likely the easier it will be because you will have more base knowledge of time and how numbers work.

So my answer is that in the end, when the kids want to learn the skill they can.  If they don't want to, they probably don't really need it at this point.

Answer 3

I definitely think it is mandatory because there may not always be a manual clock around! I don't think you should worry about the life lessons with them- whatever they don't learn they will learn from experience in life.  

Answer 4

If you are close to them, and it seems that you are since you are concerned about their education, then why don't you teach them how to tell time on a regular clock?   It would be so easy to do and you could make it a game.    Ask their mom first and I'm sure if you do it in a non-threatening and non-judgmental way, she will be happy that you are helping with their education.

"Mandatory" is a concept that changes regularly in the public school.  There is not enough time to teach everything.  A student, whether in public, private or home school, will not graduate knowing everything.  The main thing is that they know how to learn and continue learning throughout their lives.   There will be gaps .  I'm 55 years old and I'm still learning.

Answer 5

Well, I went to private school and they didn't teach us how to tell time really. I do know how to read a clock, however it takes me time to figure out the minutes. Don't blame it on homeschooling.

Answer 6

Several things came ot mind when I read this question....

First off, yes at 12-13 years of age they should be able to read an analog clock but there may be other things the kids are working on so don't be too harsh. You can always take a few minutes each time you have them over and practice!

Second, I have met kids in 5th grade public school who did not know their left from right, or how to line up a simple 2 digit addition problem. It could be worse.

There are many different styles of homeschooling and each one has it's effectiveness on different families. This family may be using an "unschooling" approach in which the teacher does not teach them until they are ready to learn and show interest by asking.  

Answer 7

I do believe that all children need to learn to read an analog clock, that's how i was taught when i was little and thats all others should be taught. and on the other side when you think about it in the not so far away future people will be only using electronics. So they probably won't need to use an analog clock.

Answer 8

Everyone SHOULD teach their kids this and I'm surprised they don't.  However, I am glad that I am not burdened by the state to prove that my children can tell time.  

Answer 9

Yes. In an actual school system they teach you to read both a digital clock and a regular hand clock in Kindergarten and they continue to teach it through at least 2nd grade.  In our school district they do. I learned it and had to learn it. My siblings had to learn it at school too.

I am not against homeschool, but, I do think that you should leave it up to your child whether they want to go to school or not. I personally believe that children should have that decision and if they want to be homeschooled, I'd get them in activities where there are other children so they can also learn their social skills.

Answer 10

My child is homeschooled.  She went to school until the middle of fourth grade and they never taught her how to use an analog clock.  (That's the clock with hands.)  I taught her when she was about five years old.

Earlier today I answered a question about whether cursive writing should be mandatory for homeschoolers.

The best thing you can do in this type of situation is offer to teach this skill to your relative's kids, rather than worry about whether something should be "mandatory," and subject to yet more government oversight.

All the best.

Answer 11

I think a child should know how to do it, but I also think it's kind of nitpicky to state that it should be a mandatory skill.  Quite frankly, if a person doesn't know how to do it, sometime during their lives they'll become frustrated by that and learn how.  (My 10yo homeschooled son knows how to read an analog clock to the minute and second, by the way.)

I personally think that important life skills include keyboarding, how to work with a computer, cooking, personal finance, how to take care of a house, car, and yard, and how to do whatever it is that he's going to do for a career.  I consider reading and being able to analyze literature, higher math, and a firm understanding of history, geography, and government to be mandatory skills; I also consider a firm grasp of written and spoken communication to be mandatory.  These are all things that my son is required to learn.

Quite frankly, if my son somehow forgets how to read a clock but is able to do all of these, I'll consider his education a success.  He plans to write at least three novels before he graduates high school, and he'll likely have at least 3 years of his Bachelor's degree out of the way by then.  If the need arises for him to read an analog clock sometime during his life, I'm sure he can figure it out.  :)

Answer 12

I'm 15 years old, and i can't really read a manual clock very well.

Nobody really taught me. In about 1st-2nd grade they assumemed we knew it so it was kind of skipped over.

I go to private school.

Answer 13

It should be mandatory, but (and I'm very against homeschooling for a variety of reasons) even elementary schools do not always teach this anymore.  My cousin (who is 16) can't read an analogue clock and he went to public school in the Golden Triangle of NC.  

Answer 14

I agree it is pretty bad bad don't blame homeschooling. I worked with a 22 yr. old college graduate who could not tell time with an analog clock either. He has an Engineering degree and was in public schools for all of his education.

Answer 15

I, like you, am not against home schooling.  However, clearly, just like in a classroom there could be gaps.  On the flip side, that is the beauty of school; if one teacher misses giving the information, another can fill in the gap later on.  I also get concerned when I see people on here who home school spell things like "a lot" as "alot".  As an English teacher this goes up one side of me, and down the other!

With this said...I, like most students, was taught to tell time on an analog clock in about the 3rd/4th grade.  However, I just COULD NOT get it.  I tried everything.  For some reason it did not click, and being the beginning of the digital age (late 70's), I thought it didn't matter.  It wasn't until I was in 7th grade learning how to tell time in French class that it finally "clicked"!  I suddenly fully understood the five minute increments and the difference between things like quarter past and half past (I should also note that I had major difficulties with the concept of fractions). But how crazy that it took another language for me to "get it"?  I now only ever wear an analog watch.  

Reading a clock IS an important life skill. Perhaps however, their parents are not in this area of curriculum yet and plan on teaching it when their children seem ready for it.  As for it being mandatory.  I think that the curriculum standards are something that are pretty set in school districts, but I don't know what standards home schooled children have to comply to.  I do know that in my state telling time on an analog clock is clearly on the curriculum as my daughter started learning "o'clock" in kindergarten last year.