Time to the Minute — Answer Key
Part A: Fix the Sentence
Each sentence has an error. Rewrite it correctly on the line.
1. Fix the sentence:
When the minute hand is on the 11, it shows 55 minutes and the time is almost the same hour.
Corrected: When the minute hand is on the 11, it shows 55 minutes and the time is almost the next hour.
When the minute hand reaches the 11, only 5 minutes are left until the next hour, so the time is almost the next hour, not the same one.
2. Fix the sentence:
Lunch at noon is at 12:00 AM.
Corrected: Lunch at noon is at 12:00 PM because PM starts at noon.
Noon is 12:00 PM because PM begins at noon and runs through the afternoon and evening. AM covers the hours from midnight up to noon.
3. Fix the sentence:
At 6:17 the minute hand points exactly to the 3.
Corrected: At 6:17 the minute hand is between the 3 and the 4 because 17 minutes is past the 15-minute mark.
Each number on the clock represents 5 minutes, so the 3 marks 15 minutes. At 6:17, the minute hand has moved just past the 3 toward the 4, since 17 is two minutes past 15.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the missing word or number on each line.
1. Midnight is 12:00 AM.
Midnight comes right at the start of a new day, before the sun rises, so it uses AM. The label AM covers all the hours from midnight until just before noon.
2. When the minute hand points to the 5, it shows 25 minutes past the hour.
Each clock number stands for 5 minutes, so the 5 marks 5 × 5 = 25 minutes past the hour.
3. If the hour hand is between 8 and 9 and the minute hand points to 2, the time is 8:10.
The 2 on the clock represents 2 × 5 = 10 minutes. With the hour hand between 8 and 9, the hour is 8, giving the time 8:10.
4. Morning times before noon use AM after the time.
Times from midnight up to noon are morning hours, and AM is the label that marks them. Once it passes noon, the label switches to PM.
Part C: True or False?
Read each statement. Circle True or False.
1. 7:00 PM is a time you might eat dinner.
True False
True. Dinner is usually eaten in the early evening, and 7:00 PM falls in that part of the day.
2. The hour hand moves faster than the minute hand.
True False
False. The minute hand actually moves much faster, completing a full lap around the clock every hour, while the hour hand creeps from one number to the next during that same hour.
3. 3:00 AM is in the middle of the night.
True False
True. AM covers the hours from midnight through early morning, and 3:00 AM is right in the dark middle stretch of the night.