Exploring Time Concepts

Overview

This two-week scheme focuses on developing senior infants’ understanding of time, aligned with the Irish Primary Mathematics Curriculum and Aistear’s key principles. Over six 35-minute sessions, children will engage in hands-on, play-based, and oral language activities to master the concept of time in daily life.

Class: Senior Infants (Age 5-6)
Class size: 17 students
Subject: Mathematics – Strand: Measures (Time)
Curricular links: Primary Mathematics Curriculum (1999), Aistear (Early Childhood Curriculum Framework)
Time allocation: 35 minutes × 6 sessions (2 weeks)

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Learning Intentions

By the end of this two-week unit, students will:

• Understand the language and vocabulary associated with time (e.g., morning, afternoon, yesterday, today, tomorrow, days of the week).
• Recognise and sequence daily routines and simple time intervals (hours, parts of the day).
• Identify everyday clocks and understand the position of hands for ‘o’clock’.
• Use temporal words confidently in oral and written contexts.
• Participate in games and practical activities to measure time (e.g., using timers, sandglasses).

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Week 1: Introduction to Time and Daily Routine

Session 1: What is Time?

Learning intention: To explore the concept of time through language and daily routines.

• Starter (5 mins): Circle Time discussion – “What do we do in the morning, afternoon, evening?” Using pictures, pupils describe their day.
• Main Activity (20 mins):
  • Read an Aistear-inspired story about a child’s daily routine (morning to night).
  • Children sequence picture cards showing daily activities.
  • Introduce key temporal words using a colourful timeline on the board.
• Plenary (10 mins): Pupils share with a partner their favourite time of day and explain why, practising new vocabulary.

Session 2: Days of the Week

Learning intention: Recognise and name the days of the week in order.

• Starter (5 mins): Sing “Days of the Week” song with actions.
• Main Activity (20 mins):
  • Use a laminated week chart; children place daily pictures in correct day slots.
  • Introduce the concept of yesterday, today, tomorrow through simple role-play.
  • Group activity: children create their own small weekly diary with drawings.
• Plenary (10 mins): Oral questions on what happened yesterday, today, and tomorrow, reinforcing vocabulary.

Session 3: Measuring Time by the Clock (O’clock)

Learning intention: To identify and read ‘o’clock’ times on analogue clocks.

• Starter (5 mins): Show large clock model with moveable hands, demonstrate how 12 and 3 look.
• Main Activity (20 mins):
  • Children work in pairs with individual paper clock faces to set and show various o’clock times given by the teacher.
  • Introduce the terms ‘hour hand’ and ‘minute hand’ using visual aids.
  • Group game: “What time is it, Mr Wolf?” adapting for time vocabulary.
• Plenary (10 mins): Recap by asking children to demonstrate their favourite time on the clock, explaining why.

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Week 2: Making Time Meaningful

Session 4: Sequencing Events in Time

Learning intention: To sequence events and understand before/after.

• Starter (5 mins): Use story cards from a familiar tale, mix them up. Pupils put them in order.
• Main Activity (20 mins):
  • Introduce temporal words ‘before’, ‘after’, ‘first’, ‘next’, and ‘last’.
  • Children draw three pictures of their own day and explain the sequence using new words.
• Plenary (10 mins): Children tell their sequence stories to a buddy. Teacher highlights time vocabulary.

Session 5: Using Timers and Duration

Learning intention: To experience time intervals using timers and sandglasses.

• Starter (5 mins): Demonstrate use of sandglass and timer.
• Main Activity (20 mins):
  • Time simple classroom activities like “tidy up” or “listening quietly” using a timer.
  • Introduce concept of “a short time” and “a long time” through comparison.
  • Children predict how long an activity will take, then time it.
• Plenary (10 mins): Discuss experiences – “Did it take longer or shorter than you thought?”

Session 6: Time Language in Context

Learning intention: To use temporal language confidently in oral and practical contexts.

• Starter (5 mins): Recap key vocabulary with flashcards (yesterday, tomorrow, o’clock, morning…).
• Main Activity (20 mins):
  • Role-play “Planning a Day Out” – children use temporal language to plan activities (e.g., “First, we will have lunch at 12 o’clock...”).
  • Create a large class timetable incorporating children’s ideas.
• Plenary (10 mins): Reflection circle – each pupil says one thing they learned about time and when they might use it.

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Assessment and Differentiation

• Ongoing formative assessment through oral questioning, observation, and peer discussion.
• Supports and extensions:
  • Visual clues and templates for pupils needing extra support.
  • Challenge extension: pupils create simple timetables independently with adult guidance.

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Resources

• Large moveable classroom clock
• Picture cards (daily routines, days of the week)
• Laminated weekly charts
• Timers and sandglasses (1 and 2-minute versions)
• Storybooks with daily routines
• Paper clock templates and colouring materials
• Whiteboard and markers for timelines and word walls

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Pedagogical Considerations

• Use of Aistear-inspired play and storytelling connects to children’s experiences and language development.
• Emphasis on oral language and vocabulary development aligns with the Primary Language Curriculum (PLC).
• Incorporate multi-sensory learning (visual, auditory, kinaesthetic) to improve engagement and retention.
• Social interaction in pairs and small groups fosters cooperative learning and confidence.
• Real-life application helps children see the relevance of measuring and understanding time.

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This plan blends IE curricular requirements with innovative, age-appropriate approaches to “wow” teachers and enhance learner engagement around the complex, abstract concept of time.