Why Do We Need Time Zones?

• Your students are learning about time zones, but do they know the reasons for them? Ask them to list reasons time zones are important. Understanding time zones allows them to find a good time to talk to friends and family in different parts of the world. Time zones also standardize times of day, so that noon on one side of the world feels the same as noon at the other side.
  
  

Time Zones Around the World

• The whole world is divided into time zones. As the Earth moves around the sun, it's tracked with these zones. Show your students a map of the world that is divided into time zones and demonstrate how an hour travels across from one zone to the next. Ask them to figure out what time it will be in different countries when they are eating lunch or doing their math or when the last bell rings for the day.
  
  

Where Have You Been?

• Some or even most of your students may have been outside of their current time zone. Others may have family or friends who live in other time zones. Hang a large world map and asking students to list the places they have lived or visited and the places where their ancestors come from or where they may have family still. Mark each place on the map along with the time zone.
  
  

Time Zones Around the World

• Being able to see a physical representation of different time zones may help your students to understand them. Bring a variety of wall clocks to your classroom and hang them on one wall in a group. Label each one with a different city and set the clock to the time in that place. Throughout the day, ask students to think about what children in another part of the world might be doing right then.