Illustration of a boy and girl looking at two types of clocks
Illustration by Tom Garrett (Debate); Shutterstock.com
Debate,

Do Kids Need to Learn How to Tell Time?

Millie thinks being able to read a regular clock is a useful skill. Troy does not agree!

From the December 2021 / January 2022 Issue
Featured Skill: Write Opinion Pieces, Participate in Conversations,
Topic: Social Studies, English Language Arts,

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Yes!

Learning to tell time is important!

Illustration by Tom Garrett (Debate); Shutterstock.com (All Images)

First of all, telling time is a good skill to have. A lot of people still use regular clocks.

Next, there won’t always be digital clocks around. What if the battery dies? You would wish you knew how to tell time the old way.

Finally, telling time teaches you math! You can practice adding numbers on a clock. You can even learn to count by fives! 

No!

Learning to tell time is a waste of time!

Illustration by Tom Garrett (Debate); Shutterstock.com (All Images)

First, it takes too much time to read a regular clock. You can look at a digital clock and know what time it is right away.

Next, digital clocks are everywhere! They are on our computers, phones, and watches.

Last, no one should have to solve a math problem to know what time it is. That is hard work for such an easy question.

Activities (1)
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Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
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1. PREPARING TO READ

Have students preview the text features. Ask:

  • What is the topic of the debate? (Prompt students to use the debate title and the picture as clues.)
  • What are the two opinions people might have about this topic?

2. READING THE DEBATE

  • Read the debate as a class or divide the class into groups.
  • You can also have students read the debate as partners, with each student reading one side aloud.

3. DISCUSSING

As a class or in groups, have students discuss:

  • Which opinion do you think makes the most sense?
  • What is your opinion? What information or argument helped you form your opinion?

 

4. WRITING

  • Pass out our opinion-writing printable (available in your Resources tab). Ask students to write their opinion in the top section.
  • Then students can underline three points in the debate that back up their opinion.
  • Last, they can complete our printable to show what their opinion is.

Text-to-Speech