Mini Minds Hub · Free printable
Time Zone Video Call Planner: Free Printable Worksheet for Year 8
- ForYear 8
- StageKey Stage 3
- CostFree
- FormatPrintable PDF
Time Zone Video Call Planner is a free printable geography worksheet for Year 8 (ages 12 to 13), in Key Stage 3. Pupils work out local times in different cities so that nobody gets a call while asleep. They fill in a table, answer numbered questions and practise crossing midnight and changing the day.
It comes from the Mini Minds Hub, the free library of printables from Jaques of London, the British games and toy company that has been making games for families since 1795. It is two A4 pages. Page 1 is for the pupil. Page 2 is for the grown up and has notes, help, a stretch idea and answers. Black and white printing works well.
What is on the sheet
Children fill in a table that lists cities and asks for the local time when London is at 18:00. A last column asks whether it is a good time to call. Numbered questions then give a time and day in one city and ask for the time in another. Some answers need a new day, so children must watch for midnight. There is space to write each answer and show the method.
- City
- Local time when London is 18:00
- Good to call?
- It is 09:00 on Saturday in London. What time is it in Delhi?
- It is 22:00 on Friday in London. What time and day is it in Sydney?
- It is 08:00 on Sunday in New York. What time is it in London?
A worked example
A city is 5 hours ahead of London. It is 21:00 on Monday in London. What time and day is it in that city?
This example uses a different time and a different gap from the sheet. It shows two ways to work, and both need care at midnight.
Method 1: count on a timeline- Draw a line from 00:00 to 24:00 and mark 21:00 for London.
- Count on to midnight. 21:00 to 24:00 is 3 hours.
- The gap is 5 hours, so 2 hours are left to count after midnight.
- Midnight starts a new day, so 2 hours later is 02:00 on Tuesday.
- Add the gap to the London time: 21 + 5 = 26.
- A clock does not show 26:00, so take away 24 to get 2.
- Taking away 24 means the day has moved on by one, so Monday becomes Tuesday.
- Write the time with two digits: 02:00.
Planning a call in four moves
Know your start
Write down which city the time is given for and which city you need. Many mistakes come from mixing these up.
Ahead or behind?
Decide whether the city you want is ahead of or behind the city you know. Write the word next to it before you do any sums.
Count the hours
Use a timeline or add and take away. Move one hour at a time if it helps.
Check the day and the sleep
If you pass midnight, change the day. Then ask whether the person you are calling would be awake and happy to answer.
Why do we have time zones?
The Earth turns once about every 24 hours. At any moment the Sun shines on one side and not the other, so it is daytime in some places and night in others. To keep clocks sensible, the world is split into time zones. Places east of London are usually ahead of it, and places west are usually behind. That is why a call at a good time for one person can wake someone else.
The International Date Line is an imaginary line that runs roughly north to south through the Pacific Ocean, with bends to keep countries together. When you cross it, the calendar date changes. Clocks also change during the year. The UK uses Greenwich Mean Time in winter and British Summer Time in summer, and other countries change on different dates or not at all. So the gap between two cities can change at some times of year.
Quick facts about time
- The Earth spins once on its axis about every 24 hours, which gives us day and night.
- The prime meridian, which is 0 degrees longitude, passes through Greenwich in London.
- The UK uses Greenwich Mean Time in winter and British Summer Time in summer.
- Not every country changes its clocks for summer.
- The International Date Line is where the calendar date changes as you travel across it.
Skills and curriculum link
- Time zone calculations
- Crossing midnight and dates
- Comparing time windows
- Using the 24 hour clock
- Giving reasons for a choice
Ideas to help you support your child
- East and westAsk which way the Sun appears to move across the sky. It helps children see why places further east have later clocks than places further west.
- Midnight is the tricky bitRemind children that 24:00 is the end of one day and the start of the next. After it, the date goes up by one.
- Reasons matterAsk why a time is good or bad for a call. Awake hours, school and work all count, so there is more than one sensible view.
- Use a mapA world map or time zone map is a useful check. Ask your child to point to the two cities before they start a sum.
Key words
- Time zoneA region of the world that keeps the same standard time.
- Local timeThe time on the clocks in a particular place.
- AheadHaving a later time than another place at the same moment.
- BehindHaving an earlier time than another place at the same moment.
- International Date LineAn imaginary line across the Pacific Ocean where the calendar date changes.
- 24 hour clockA way of writing time from 00:00 to 23:59 without am or pm.
How to use it
- Print both pages. Page 1 is for your child. Keep page 2, which has the notes and answers.
- Read the table headings together. Check your child understands what the Good to call column is asking.
- Work through the first question together. Ask your child to say whether the city is ahead of or behind London before they calculate.
- Let your child finish the rest alone. A world map or time zone map can be used to check their thinking.
- Check with page 2 and ask for the method as well as the answer. Come back another day to redo any tricky ones.
Help, stretch and game ideas
If it feels too hard
Draw a timeline from 00:00 to 24:00 for London. Mark the start time, then count on or back the number of hours of difference, one hour at a time. If you pass 24:00, the day has changed. Do the table one row at a time.
To stretch confident children
Agree what counts as good calling hours, such as 08:00 to 21:00 local time. Find the longest window when London, Lagos and Delhi are all in good hours. Then explain how you found it and what could change it.
Make it a game
Pick a real or imagined relative in another city. Agree what counts as a good calling time for each of you, then plan a weekly call. Swap plans with a partner and check each other's times on a timeline. Score a point for each correct time.
Mistakes to watch for
Watch forA child adds the hours when the city is behind, or takes them away when it is ahead.
Try thisWrite the word ahead or behind next to the city before calculating. Check that the answer fits the word.
Watch forThe time goes past 24:00 and the child writes something like 26:00.
Try thisA clock never shows 24:00 or more as a time of day. Take away 24, then move the day on by one.
Watch forThe child uses the wrong direction when the known time is in the other city and London is the one to find.
Try thisWrite the two city names with their start and finish labels first. Then decide whether to add or take away.
Talk about it
- Why is a good time to call for you a bad time for someone far away?
- What would you do if you needed to call someone who lives on the other side of the world?
- How can you tell if a day has changed when you cross midnight?
- What do you think counts as a polite time to call? Does everyone agree?
- Why do you think the International Date Line has bends in it?
- How could a timeline help you check your own answer?
Take it off the page
Torch and globe
In a dim room, shine a torch on a globe or ball. Turn it slowly and talk about which places have day and which have night.
Family call chart
Draw a chart for a real relative or a friend overseas. Mark the hours when each of you is awake and shade the hours that overlap.
Clock strip
Draw a strip of 24 boxes for the 24 hours of a day. Colour sleeping hours in one colour and school or work hours in another.
Who it is for
Parents
Sit with your child for the first question, then let them lead. Ask them to explain how they decided whether to add or take away. Praise careful thinking, not only correct answers. Use a world map if it helps.
Teachers
Use it as a starter, plenary or homework after teaching time zones. The reasoning column gives a chance to talk about sensible calling hours. It works for early finishers and supply cover, and needs no preparation beyond printing.
Home educators
Pair it with a world map or globe and a family call to someone far away. Ask your learner to plan the call themselves. It can be repeated later for revision or used again for brothers and sisters.
Where this fits in geography
Before this sheet, pupils usually meet latitude and longitude, the idea that the Earth rotates, and the 24 hour clock. They also need to be comfortable adding and taking away with hours. This sheet then applies those ideas to a realistic problem.
After it, pupils can look at how time zones affect trade, travel and global communication. They can also explore why some countries choose unusual time zones, and how maps show the world's regions. These topics build on the same skills of reading maps and reasoning with numbers.
Questions parents and teachers ask
- What age is the Time Zone Video Call Planner for?
It is written for Year 8 (ages 12 to 13), in Key Stage 3. Younger pupils may manage it with help, and older pupils can use the stretch idea on page 2 to make it harder.
- What will children practise?
They practise calculating time differences between world cities and judging sensible calling times. They also practise crossing midnight and changing the date, within the topic of time zones and the International Date Line.
- Do pupils need to know time zones before they start?
It works best after time zones have been taught. Pupils may use a world map or time zone map to check their thinking. The help idea on page 2 uses a simple timeline for anyone who finds it hard.
- What if my child finds it too hard?
Draw a timeline from 00:00 to 24:00 for London. Add or take away hours by counting along the line. Work through the first question together and then try one row of the table at a time.
- Is the sheet free?
Yes. It is free to print for home and classroom use. You can print it again for brothers, sisters or revision a few weeks later.
- Can teachers use it in class?
Yes. It works as a starter, plenary, early finisher task, homework or table activity. It needs no preparation beyond printing, and page 2 has support and stretch ideas for mixed ability groups.
- Is it screen free, and do I need colour printing?
Yes, it is screen free and needs only paper and a pencil. It prints well in black and white on plain A4 paper, so colour is not needed.
Preview the full PDF
Made by Jaques of London, making games for families since 1795. A printable supports classroom learning and does not replace a teacher.