As I’ve been writing about routines and transitions, I’ve thought back to an interesting product I discovered not long ago. This product, called the Time Timer, displays time visually with a red segment that gets smaller as time progresses. This is a great way to help children understand the concept of time. Instead of verbal reminders, which often sound arbitrary to young children who can’t tell if 20 minutes is longer than 5 minutes, time becomes a visual concept.
The Time Timer could be useful for routines at home (“We have 30 minutes to get ready for bed. If there’s time left, we can read an extra story.”) as well as at school (“We will have snack time in 20 minutes.”). It can also be useful for making transition times and time limits more tangible (“Five more minutes until clean up.” or “You have 15 minutes of computer time.”). You may even want it for car rides to answer that constant “How much farther?” question.
So here’s the deal: Leave a comment here with at least one way you would be able to use the Time Timer in your home or classroom. (One comment per person, please. New commenters take time to be moderated, so don’t panick if it doesn’t show up right away!) On Monday morning I will announce the winner, randomly drawn from those comments, and Time Timer will ship you your prize. Easy enough, right? Well then, get on with it! Time’s a wastin’!