An Inclusive Guide to Time: Developing Perception and Management

Think about the last time you drove or walked somewhere you’ve never been before. How long did it take you to get there? 

How long did it feel like it took?

When you aren’t sure if your destination is around the next corner or if you may have missed a turn and are lost, your senses tend to be at a heightened level without even knowing it. When you’re operating at this level, your sense of time is easily skewed.

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This is how a neurodiverse child can feel all the time. They need frequent reminders of what’s coming next so they’re not experiencing their bodies in a constantly heightened state, which is uncomfortable and, frankly, tiring.

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Thankfully, there are strategies that can help. By establishing predictable transitions and routines, we can make our students feel secure, confident, and comfortable. This leads to a more productive and enjoyable school day, and also helps support important executive functions like time management. 

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This will be the first blog in a series discussing how and why we need to help our students establish positive transitions and routines throughout the school day. Before diving into the specifics of routines and transitions, let’s begin with background on the development of a sense of time and methods to strengthen that sense.

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Defining Time Management & Perception

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Time management is an important executive function skill. It’s not just about showing up to class or an appointment on time, knowing when to set the alarm clock in the morning, or figuring out how long it will take to complete a task —  it’s also the internal sensation of time passing. 

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Have you ever heard someone say that time is going so slowly, or just the opposite, that time is flying by? We’ve all experienced the sensation that the passing of time doesn’t match what’s happening on the clock. However, some people with a weakness in time management have real difficulty properly feeling the passage of time.

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Let’s look at how most people develop their sense of time by age range.

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Developmental Ages & Stages of the Concept of Time 

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Understanding how the concept of time typically develops is important in adjusting our expectations for children. For instance, it is unrealistic to expect a three-year-old to remember and grasp the concept that a holiday happens at a specific time of year because, developmentally, their understanding of time has not yet reached that stage.

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Although no two children will develop this awareness in the exact same way or time frame, having a general idea can guide us on how to communicate routines and schedules and which skills are important to strengthen for different age groups. 

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Age 2: Here and now

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At the age of two, children typically demonstrate a limited comprehension of time, primarily focusing on the present moment. Their cognitive abilities and language skills are still in the early stages of development, and as a result, their understanding of the past and future is not fully formed. Instead, their perception of time revolves around immediate experiences and events.

Two-year-olds tend to live in the "here and now" and are primarily concerned with their immediate needs and desires. They may remember recent events or activities but struggle to grasp the concept of time as a linear progression. They are more likely to remember experiences that occurred in the near past rather than events from a more distant past.

When it comes to the future, two-year-olds have difficulty envisioning or planning for events that are beyond their current scope of understanding. Long-term anticipation or thinking ahead is not yet within their cognitive grasp. They might express anticipation for immediate gratification, such as waiting for a favorite snack or toy, but their concept of future extends only to a short span of time.

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Ages 3 & 4: Understanding yesterday, today, & tomorrow

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Between the ages of three and four, children start to grasp concepts like yesterday, today, and tomorrow. But it's not always clear-cut, and you might hear a child say something like, "Grandma was here yesterday!" even if it was actually a few months ago.  This phenomenon highlights that their grasp of the past is still developing, and they may not accurately gauge the passage of time.

During this phase, parents may intentionally withhold information about an upcoming exciting event from their young children. They do this because they know that the child's limited concept of the future will lead to them asking about it over and over.

This repetition stems from the child's cognitive limitations in understanding time beyond immediate expectations. However, it is important to recognize that this process is a crucial part of their overall development in comprehending both the past and the future.

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Ages 5 & 6: Understanding morning, noon, night & durations

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Once children reach the ages of five to six years old, they typically start to understand that breakfast happens in the morning, lunch happens in the middle of the day, and dinner at the end of the day. They may start to ask more questions about the specific time something is happening, and they may start to understand the duration of specific events.

When I was about this age, my favorite cartoon was Scooby Doo. I had internalized the feeling of the passage of one Scooby Doo episode, which was 15 minutes long. It became my reference for all time. When we’d get into the car or go to the store, I’d ask how long it was going to last by asking, “How many Scooby Doos until we get there?” This was my development taking its last step before understanding that a clock came into play when telling time and seeing the passage of time.

We know that these development ages are not the same for all children, but it’s important to understand the general ages we would expect to see these concepts cementing in a child’s mind. When working with neurodivergent students or those with a disability, these concepts may take longer to develop or may develop faster than their peers. Regardless of when these concepts develop, there are many strategies that we can use to reinforce the understanding of time.

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Reinforcing Concepts of Time

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We can help reinforce the concepts of time in multiple ways throughout the school day, even in our casual conversations with students. Here are a few examples:

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Use units of time frequently & with increasing specificity 

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The first method is to frequently use words such as “before” and “after.” We can say, “Before we go to bed, we brush our teeth.” Or we can say, “After we go to the grocery store, we’ll come back home and put the groceries away.” This type of language not only helps to ease anxiety about what is coming before or after an event, but it also assigns time to an event. 

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As children start to develop these concepts a bit further, words like “soon,” “later,” “morning,” and “evening” begin to create more specific units of time.

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Narrate with time-dependent words

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Teachers and caregivers can reinforce concepts of time by discussing activities. As you prepare your morning toast, talk through the process using time-dependent words: “I love having toast for breakfast in the morning! First, I’m going to cut a piece of bread, and then I’ll put it into the toaster. After the toaster is finished, I’ll put butter and honey on the toast. Mmm…this toast will help keep my belly full until we have lunch at noon.” This type of external dialog helps children understand the passing of time and time concept words as they hear your thinking process.

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Discuss weekly schedules

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Finally, communicate regularly scheduled activities during the week to children either verbally or with a visual calendar. This is helpful for all age groups, but as students get closer to the final developmental stage of understanding time, they’ll start to remember that music is on Tuesdays and art is on Fridays. 

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We can really help support students when it comes to understanding time; it's all about giving them that feeling of time passing. When their day is predictable, it's like a light bulb goes off in their brains — they start to get the hang of how time works and how it shapes their day.

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The next blog in this series will be all about routines — why they’re important, what they can help with, and what to do when a student struggles to follow them. 

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Looking for specific ways to incorporate time concepts and management in the classroom or at home? Contact me.

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