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LESSON PLAN

Duration and Elapsed Time

A
Apothem Team
Grade 5 · Measurement
LESSON AT A GLANCE
Warm-up
5 min
Explore
15 min
Consolidate
10 min
Practice
12 min
Exit ticket
3 min

Warm-up

The tide was high at 6:35 am. The next high tide is 12 hours 25 minutes later. When is the next high tide? 6:35 + 12:25. Hours: 6+12=18:35. Minutes: 35+25=60 = 1 extra hour. 18:35 + 1:00 = 19:35 = 7:35 pm. This is elapsed time in a real ecological context.

Explore

Natural cycle elapsed time challenge: each group investigates one natural cycle (tidal, lunar, seasonal, migration). They research the cycle length and solve 3 elapsed time problems using that cycle. Share: if low tide was at 3:18 pm, when is the next low tide? What day is the next full moon after today?

Consolidate

Practice

Students calculate elapsed time for 6 problems (including 2 crossing noon), solve 2 natural cycle problems, and map a school-day schedule on a timeline. Exit ticket: a movie starts at 7:25 pm and lasts 2 hours 15 minutes. When does it end?

Exit ticket

Students calculate elapsed time for 6 problems (including 2 crossing noon), solve 2 natural cycle problems, and map a school-day schedule on a timeline. Exit ticket: a movie starts at 7:25 pm and lasts 2 hours 15 minutes. When does it end?

TIP  The counting-up strategy is the most reliable for elapsed time. Count from start time to the next convenient landmark (next hour, next round number), then continue to the end time. Add the segments.
WORKED EXAMPLES
How much time passes between 9:47 am and 1:15 pm?

Count up: 9:47 to 10:00 = 13 min. 10:00 to 1:00 pm = 3 hours. 1:00 to 1:15 = 15 min. Total: 3 hours 28 minutes.

A journey takes 4 hours 35 minutes. It starts at 11:20 am. When does it end?

11:20 + 4 h = 3:20 pm. 3:20 + 35 min = 3:55 pm. The journey ends at 3:55 pm.

MATERIALS
Analog and digital clock manipulatives
Timeline strips
Natural cycles reference chart (tides, moon, seasons)
Elapsed time problem cards
WATCH FOR
!Students may try to add hours and minutes without accounting for the 60-minute boundary: 1:45 + 30 min = 1:75 (wrong). Always convert 60+ minutes to hours when the minutes total exceeds 60.
!Students may confuse am and pm when elapsed time crosses noon. Use 24-hour notation for clarity in these cases.