My son is turning 6 June 6th. My inlaws would like to get him a watch for his birthday, since learning to tell time will be important thing to learn in the next year or two. She asked me, if I think a face or digital one would be better for him. What do you all think?
They do make watches with a face and has ditital numbers underneath the face. They shouldn't be too hard to find I don't think.
Of course, the kind with a face will help teach him to tell time, but if he's not ready for the a digital one would be more fun for him. He'd be able to use it right away and it will make him feel grown up to be able to know what time it is. You can always practice telling time with a regular clock and use the promise of a new watch as a reward when he learns how to read a face clock.
Personally, I would ask that they get the analog watch. That is how they teach time in school. It will be very beneficial in the long run. Our son is still struggling with telling time and he is almost 7. We only have the analog clocks in our house, so it sort of helps our son with knowing how much time is left before bed or before he can do something. We are still struggling, but eventually he will understand that there are five minutes between each number on the clock.
My husband is a HS teacher and he said most of his kids can't tell time on a face clock only digital. I think it would be a good idea to give your son a face watch so he can learn to tell time that way. I'm sure you have digital clocks at home too so he will know how to tell time both ways.
A watch is a great birthday present for this age. I bought a really great "time-teaching" watch from Toy World in Chanhassen (they also have a store in Wayzata). It has a regular face, but is printed in increments that teach time by minutes, and quarter hours etc. They also come in different themes like dinosaur, space, weather, etc. You can also order these on-line. Go to :
I agree that an analog watch with hands will be more helpful in teaching him how to tell time. It will also help him learn time span--in other words, what five minutes looks like, a half hour, etc., and how to know when that time span is up. This is good for "we'll leave in 15 minutes" type stuff. However, if you want a quick-fix on knowing what time it is "now" (like, when it says 5:00 we'll eat), then a digital one might be better for you.
If you want him to actually learn how to tell time I would think the watch with the numbers would be better. Digital ones tell you the time.
A face with numbers really assist kids with telling time easier. My son's first watch was one with face & numbers and he did really well with it. He is 10 now & has since gotten a new watch with the roman numerals on it.
I remember getting a watch when I was 6! LOL. It was a great memory. I agree with the ones that say not to get a digital. My brother in law is 28 and still can not tell time by looking at a clock face- and he's a teacher!
