How exact do the answers need to be?

To the minute. Third grade clocks can show 11:42 or 6:17, so the answer key expects the exact time. That's a good reason to count the single ticks instead of rounding to the nearest five.

What if my child is still slow with the five-minute marks?

Drop back to the second grade version of this skill for a few sheets. Reading to the minute is just fives plus ones, so once the fives feel automatic the rest comes quickly.

3rd grade telling time

3rd grade telling time worksheets

Third grade telling time worksheets use the full clock: any minute is fair game. A clock might read 11:42 or 6:17, so the minute hand sits between numerals and the count runs by fives plus a few extra ticks. On the draw-the-hands version your child draws those times instead.

Free printable PDF worksheet, aligned to Common Core 3.MD.A.1.

Each print is a different sheet with its own answer key. You don't need to sign up.

The kind of problems you'll get

Write the time shown.

At 3:00, where do the hands point?
Answer: The short hand points to 3; the long hand points to 12.

Most problems on this sheet sit beside a picture, model or diagram, so this is the worked example the sheet itself prints. The answer key on page two prints the answer under every problem.

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 a 3rd grade sheet

The sample sheet above has 6 problems. This sheet is aligned to 3.MD.A.1. The 2nd grade sheet is aligned to 2.MD.C.7.

Read the clocks. Write the time shown. 6 problems per page.
Drawing clock hands. Draw a short hour hand and a long minute hand for each time. 6 problems per page.

Every version prints on US Letter or A4, with its answer key after the problems.

How to teach this

At the nearest minute, the move is fives then ones: skip count to the numeral before the minute hand, then count the single ticks. Have your child say it aloud (40, 41, 42) before writing 11:42. Watch the minutes column too: seven minutes past six is 6:07, and that zero is easy to drop.

Watch for: Kids read the long hand as the hour because it's the one that stands out. The short hand always tells the hour, so find it first, then count minutes with the long hand. Kids call 4:45 five o'clock because the hour hand has moved past halfway. The hour stays 4 until the short hand actually reaches the 5. On draw-the-hands sheets, kids point the hour hand straight at the number for times like 4:30. By half past, the hour hand should sit halfway between the 4 and the 5, and the key draws it there.

Common questions about 3rd grade telling time

How exact do the answers need to be?: To the minute. Third grade clocks can show 11:42 or 6:17, so the answer key expects the exact time. That's a good reason to count the single ticks instead of rounding to the nearest five.
What if my child is still slow with the five-minute marks?: Drop back to the second grade version of this skill for a few sheets. Reading to the minute is just fives plus ones, so once the fives feel automatic the rest comes quickly.

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Aligned to Common Core 3.MD.A.1. Reviewed by the One more sheet team. Content version 240, updated October 2026.

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