Finding out how long things take

Mathematics · Measurement · ages 7-8

Name ______________________ Date ____________

A trip to the grocery store takes longer than one blink of your eyes.
Circle one: True False
About how long does it take to brush your teeth?
- 2 minutes
- 2 hours
- 2 seconds
Breakfast starts when the clock shows this time. What time is it?
- 7:42
- 8:42
- 7:34
Piano practice starts at 4:05 and ends at 4:20. How many minutes did it last?
Answer: ______________
Which is the best estimate for how long it takes to eat a bowl of cereal?
- 5 minutes
- 5 seconds
- 5 hours
Which lasted longer: a 12-minute cartoon or a 45-minute movie?
- The cartoon
- The movie
- They lasted the same time
A video runs from 2:48 to 3:02. A song runs from 3:00 to 3:19. Which one lasted longer?
- The video
- The song
- They lasted the same time
Zara's swim lesson starts at 9:15 and lasts 20 minutes. She says it ends at 9:25. What mistake did she make?
- She only added 10 minutes instead of 20
- She read the wrong hour
- She mixed up minutes and seconds

Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

True · A blink lasts a tiny fraction of a second. A grocery trip takes many minutes, so it is much longer.
2 minutes · Brushing your teeth is a short job. A couple of minutes is enough, not hours and not just seconds.
7:42 · The hour hand is close to 8 but has not passed it yet, so the hour is still 7. The minute hand points to 42.
15 · Count forward from 5 to 20 on the clock face: that is 15 minutes.
5 minutes · Eating a bowl of cereal takes a few minutes, not just a few seconds and nowhere near hours.
The movie · 45 minutes is more than 12 minutes, so the movie lasted longer.
The song · The video lasted 14 minutes (2:48 to 3:02), but the song lasted 19 minutes (3:00 to 3:19), so the song was longer.
She only added 10 minutes instead of 20 · 9:15 plus 20 minutes is 9:35. Zara only counted 10 minutes, so her end time is 10 minutes too early.