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Common Core Math3rd GradeMeasurement & Data

3.MD.1: Tell Time to the Minute and Find Elapsed Time

Also written as 3.MD.A.1 and CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.3.MD.A.1 · Cluster: Solve problems involving measurement and estimation.

Make a 3.MD.1 Number LineAll 25 3rd Grade Math Standards

The Official Wording

Tell and write time to the nearest minute and measure time intervals in minutes. Solve word problems involving addition and subtraction of time intervals in minutes, e.g., by representing the problem on a number line diagram.

Common Core State Standards, Grade 3, Measurement & Data · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026

What 3.MD.1 Means in Plain English

Third graders read an analog clock when the minute hand sits between the numbers: 9:47, not “about ten to ten.” They also find how long something took. Recess ran from 9:47 to 10:15, so they jump on a number line: 13 minutes to 10:00, then 15 more, 28 minutes.

Problems stay within minutes, no hours-and-minutes conversions yet, and the number line does the arithmetic: friendly jumps to the next hour, then on. Second grade stopped at five-minute readings (2.MD.7). Fourth grade adds converting hours to minutes and problems with mixed units (4.MD.2).

3.MD.1 I Can Statements

  • I can read and write the time to the nearest minute.
  • I can find how many minutes pass between two times.
  • I can show an elapsed-time problem on a number line.

3.MD.1 Worked Example

Recess on a Tuesday, read off the classroom clock at both ends and then measured in minutes on a number line.

Problem

Recess started when the clock read 9:47 and ended at 10:15. How many minutes long was recess?

How long was recess?
  1. Read the start time. The hour hand is past the 9, and the minute hand is 2 marks past the 9, which is 45 plus 2.Start: 9:47
  2. Draw a number line with 9:47 at the left. Jump to the next friendly time, 10:00. From 47 to 60 is 13 minutes.9:47 to 10:00 is 13 min
  3. Jump from 10:00 to the end time, 10:15. That is 15 minutes.10:00 to 10:15 is 15 min
  4. Add the jumps.13 + 15 = 28 minutes
AnswerRecess lasted 28 minutes.

Check it: Count forward from 9:47 by 28 minutes: 9:47 plus 13 is 10:00, plus 15 more is 10:15. The end time matches.

Common Mistakes with 3.MD.1

Subtracting the clock digits

10:15 minus 9:47 worked like 1015 minus 947, giving 68 minutes

Try this: Keep the arithmetic on the number line. Jump to the next whole hour first, then count on, so no one subtracts across 60.

Reading the minute hand as the number it points to

Minute hand two marks past the 9 read as 9 minutes, so 9:09 instead of 9:47

Try this: Count by fives around the clock to the number first, 5, 10, 15, and then count on the single marks.

Wrong hour near the top of the clock

At 9:47 the hour hand is almost on the 10, so the time is read as 10:47

Try this: Look at which two numbers the hour hand is between and take the smaller one. It only becomes 10 when it reaches the 10.

Where 3.MD.1 Fits

Comes Before2.MD.7Tell time to the nearest five minutes and use a.m. and p.m.2.NBT.5Add and subtract within 100 fluently.
Alongside3.NBT.2Add and subtract within 1000, which covers every minute total this year.3.OA.8Solve two-step word problems and check that the answer is reasonable.
Comes Next4.MD.2Solve word problems with time, money and measurement, converting hours to minutes.

Practice 3.MD.1

Number Line GeneratorFree ToolOpen number lines, or lines labeled in 5-minute steps from one hour to the next, for jumping from a start time to an end time.Open line5-minute stepsOne hour
Make Number Lines
Word Problem GeneratorFree ToolAddition and subtraction stories about minutes: a start time and how long it lasted, or two times and the gap between them, with an answer key.TimeMinutes onlyGrade 3
Make Word Problems

Quick Check

  1. The minute hand is 3 marks past the 7 and the hour hand is between the 2 and the 3. What time is it?
  2. Art class starts at 1:35 and lasts 40 minutes. When does it end?
  3. Sam left home at 7:52 and got to school at 8:20. How long did the walk take?

3.MD.1: Other Names

3.MD.13.MD.A.1CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.3.MD.A.1

Common Core State Standards © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved. Official wording from the Common Core State Standards PDFs at corestandards.org, last checked October 14, 2026. The explanation, I can statements, example, mistakes and practice on this page are EMStudio’s own, written beside the official wording. They are not part of the standard.