On the hour

Focus on children's own experiences to facilitate thinking about the tricky concept of time, in a two-part project from Jane Drake Time is a difficult concept for young children, and their understanding develops through first-hand experiences in their own world. To make sense of time and schedules in their lives, it is important that adults explain plans in terms that are easily understood. Routines can offer children a framework for sequencing events within the day or week. They often find their own ways of measuring time when anticipating an exciting event - for example, asking 'How many "sleeps" until my...