My daughter just turned 5 years old and she has had this fascination with clocks and understanding the concept of time lately. I also have been struggling with structuring a schedule for the kids and getting them to bed on time (with the sun being out later). So… I came up with this bright idea (well at least I hope it is a bright idea), to make a schedule that my daughter could visualize and understand. I designed a cute clock to match a wall clock and I designed tons of things that a little kid might fill their day with. We printed, cut, and laminated all the pieces. Then we put magnets on the back of the activities. We posted the clock on the fridge, near our wall clock so that she could easily reference what time it is. She simply looks at the small hand to determine what part of the day it is and what we are supposed to be doing.
Every night before bed, we have been planning our next day together, it actually has been a lot of fun. It has been a great way for us to reflect on how much time we are watching TV (sometimes I let them watch too much), and it has been a great way to remind me to mix things up and not do the same-old everyday. So far, it has surprisingly helped, and I don’t seem to have to fight with her on “it’s time to do ….” because she can see it and she helps me decide what she wants to do on her schedule. My kid’s schedule doesn’t really need more than one clock rotation (she gets up around 8am and goes to bed by 9pm), so I made a single clock. But I have also made 2 other clocks, one that says “Morning Schedule” and the other “Afternoon Schedule”, so that you can extend the schedule if you need.
What a great idea!
thank you for the great idea!! I’m going to do the same thing… but I’m going to attach a real clock to a white board… and put the magnets around the clock.. and when the hand points to the activity the kids know thats what we are doing…. it will reinforce how time goes by
This is brilliant! And adorable. My 4 & 6 year old’s, who are also fascinated with clocks and telling time right now, will both love this! It will help me stay on track, too. Thank you so much for sharing this freely!
I am trying to download your file for the clock/schedule and I am having a hard time finding the file. Everything I click on that says “download” takes me to advertisements. Am I doing something wrong?
I absolutely love this idea! My three yr old is autistic and though he can’t tell time yet, this Will be a great way to get him started on a routine Ty
What a darling idea for such a difficult concept to learn! Thanks so much!!!
Thanks for sharing! Those little images were exactly what I was looking for.
This is so cute! Thanks so much for sharing!