Time scales are not easy for children to grasp. In addition, various studies show that the concept of time does not emerge spontaneously but can be acquired with a well-organized education depending on the mental competence and experiential accumulation of the child, and the frequency of use of these concepts in the child’s life and the intensity of activities that will strengthen the perception of time are emphasized.
Do we have time-based conversations like “What did we do yesterday with our child, what do we plan to wear tomorrow, will we go on a picnic this weekend?” Or do they hear conversations with others about this content? Is there a calendar use at home or does everyone deal with this issue quietly from their own screen? How is the emphasis on time in the common conversations of the household? Considering the answers to these questions and making changes in them will be beneficial in terms of providing the child’s comprehension of time.
The concept of time in children is shaped in the first 6 years of life depending on mental development and experience. During this period, rapid progress is seen in children in terms of physical, mental, emotional, and social aspects. As the child grows up, he records everything he sees around him in his mind, begins to make sense of it, and classifies it. It starts with concrete (visible) concepts to build the ability to comprehend. It is more difficult for them to learn abstract concepts. They try to learn by concretizing soft information.
While teaching the concept of time to children, plans should be made according to their age. Regular sleeping and eating habits should be gained from the first years of life. These are things that must be done consistently every day. Try to teach the child what to do with the definitions of before and after the meal, before and after the sleep with reference to the fixed things to do. Night and day are distinguishable concepts. They are taken as a reference when teaching the concept of time. The concepts of yesterday, today, and tomorrow can be taught by the child’s own experiences. The game we played yesterday, the trip we will go on today, the guest who will come home tomorrow are handled by realizing the concepts that inform time.
You can do various activities to teach your child about the concepts of time. Draw relevant pictures for each season with, for example, snowman for winter, beach time for summer. Our worksheets will also make it easier for you to teach, practice, and test the knowledge of days of the week, months of the year, and seasons.
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