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This Week at LVCC
How to Teach Time Concepts to Children
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This Week 
at LVCC
How to Teach Time Concepts to Children

Waiting for the holidays can be difficult for impatient young children with no sense of time. They live in the here and the now. How do you teach time concepts to someone that has all the time in the world?

"Time is not concrete. It's abstract. You can't see it. You can't taste, touch, or feel it. Children learn when they observe and explore using their senses," explained Sandy Haas, Pre-K Counts head teacher at LVCC's Judith Chase Early Learning Center. She shared her insight on how to introduce the concept of time.

Be Consistent and Flexible
By starting a consistent daily routine, infants develop sleeping and eating patterns. Toddlers begin to realize that events happen in sequence - breakfast in the morning, outside play, lunch in the afternoon, followed by an afternoon nap. For children attending an early learning center, keeping a similar schedule at home helps them understand what comes next. As your child grows, adjust the routine to meet her needs, keeping the order of activities the same (i.e. eating lunch earlier to accommodate one afternoon nap, rather than two daily naps). And when transitioning from one activity to the next, give your child time to adjust.

Use Words for Units of Time
Before and after is a concept difficult to understand for young tots living in the immediate present. In daily conversations, use verbal cues to show sequencing of events. First we put on our socks, then we put on our shoes. Past, present and future are especially difficult concepts to grasp. Time becomes more meaningful for preschoolers when associated with important events, such as birthdays and holidays. Tomorrow is Christmas and we are going to Grandma's house.

In her preK classroom, Sandy has a daily schedule posted. Since the preschoolers are only beginning to read, a photo is pasted next to name of the activity. The children associate the photo with the day's events to know what comes next. Sandy then changes the hands of a clock face to show the time of the activity. In class discussion, she asks what happens after group time at 9:10 a.m. The children can use the chart to answer, "snack time."

Read a Book
Stories with colorful pictures engage children. And there are so many available to help teach about sequences. Based on the classic song, Today is Monday by Eric Carle shares a rhythmic tale of exotic animals eating tasty treats every day of the week. Toddlers enjoy listening to the daily antics of a young llama in Anna Dewdney's Llama Llama Wakey-Wake and Llama Llama Nighty Night.

Sing Songs
Use music and songs to teach days of the week and months of the year. A popular preschool song is "Days of the Week," sung to the tune of The Addams Family theme song.

Days of the week! (snap, snap)
Days of the week! (snap, snap)
Days of the week! Days of the week! Days of the week! (snap, snap)
There's Sunday and there's Monday,
There's Tuesday and there's Wednesday,
There's Thursday and there's Friday,
And then there's Saturday!
Days of the week! (snap, snap)
Days of the week! (snap, snap)
Days of the week! Days of the week! Days of the week! (snap, snap)

Keep a Calendar
In conjunction with lyrics and rhyme, it's important to follow along with a calendar to identify days and months. Add pictures for special days on the calendar. 

To help time pass more quickly until a special day, make a countdown chain with your child. Cut strips of construction paper (one for every day prior to and including the special day). Link the paper by pasting/stapling/taping two ends of a paper strip, then looping the next strip of paper through it. Your child should make the last loop especially decorative for his special day. After proudly displaying your creation, tear one link off at the end of each day. Every day, your child will grow more excited knowing he's one day closer to his big day.

Lehigh Valley Children's Centers provides high quality early education and child care to promote healthy child development, meet the needs of families, and encourage children to discover the joy of learning.

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