3rd grade elapsed time worksheets

The kind of problems you'll get

Every print pulls a fresh set of problems at this level, so a make-up test or a second sibling never gets the same sheet.

What's on each sheet

• Fluency. Fill in the missing time. 9 questions per page.

Every version prints on US Letter or A4, with its answer key on the last page.

How to teach this

Teach the count-up in two jumps: from the start time to the next o'clock, then from there to the end. Have your child write both jumps down (45 to reach 3:00, then 40 more) before adding them. If the total comes out as 85 min, that's fine at first; converting it to 1 h 25 min can be its own step.

Watch for: Kids subtract times like plain numbers, turning 3:10 minus 2:50 into 60 minutes. An hour has 60 minutes, not 100, so count up instead: 2:50 to 3:00 is 10 minutes, then 10 more makes 20. Kids forget the hour flips at 12 when a span crosses noon. Make 12:00 a landmark: count the minutes up to noon first, then keep counting on the p.m. side.

Common questions about elapsed time

What do the problems look like?

Each one prints a start and an end time, like Start: 2:15 p.m., End: 3:40 p.m., with a line for the answer. Elapsed time gets written as hours and minutes (1 h 25 min) or just 45 min for shorter spans.

What's the best way to solve them?

Count up in two jumps: from the start to the next o'clock, then on to the end time. A quick number line sketch makes the jumps visible and heads off the borrowing mistakes that come from subtracting times like plain numbers.

Related worksheets

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