The big ideaA date has slashes between its parts. A time has a colon. Check the order.
How it works
A date has three parts: the month, the day and the year. Slashes keep the parts apart, so they never run together.
Where the month goes first, 04/03/2027 means April the third. Where the day comes first, the same date means March the fourth. Always check the order.
A time puts a colon between the hour and the minutes, like 10:30. Minutes always have two digits, so five past is 05. AM is for morning and PM is for evening.
The slash key is at the bottom right, beside the right pinky. The colon is shift and the semicolon key: shift goes under the left pinky and the right pinky taps.
The slash key, blue, sits at the bottom right.Hold shift and tap the semicolon key for a colon.
Example 1: Type a date
Type the month, 04.
Reach down and right for the slash key, tap it, and come back.
Type the day, 03, then another slash.
Type the year, 2027.
Read it back: with the month first, this is April the third.
Example 2: Type a time
Type the hour, 10.
Hold shift and tap the semicolon key for the colon.
Type the minutes, 30.
Half past ten is typed 10:30.
Example 3: Five past nine in the morning
Type the hour, 9.
Type the colon.
Minutes always have two digits, so five past is 05.
Add a space and AM: 9:05 AM.
Example 4: Check the order
Nora typed 04/03/2027, with the month first.
Dev read it with the day first, as March the fourth.
Both read it right in their own order.
Writing April three, twenty twenty-seven cannot be mixed up.
Words to know
date
The month, the day and the year, kept apart by slashes.
slash
The key that goes between the parts of a date.
colon
The mark that goes between the hour and the minutes of a time.
AM and PM
Short words after a time: AM is for morning, PM is for evening.
Watch out
Slashes are for dates and colons are for times. A slash between the hour and the minutes is a mix-up.
Minutes need two digits: 6:05, not 6:5.
A date can be read two ways, so check whether the month or the day comes first.
Add AM or PM after the time to tell morning from evening.
Try it
What goes between the parts of a date?
What goes between the hour and the minutes?
With the month first, what does 09/12/2028 mean?
How do you type five past six in the evening?
Answers: 1. A slash · 2. A colon · 3. September the twelfth · 4. 6:05 PM
Try at homeWith a grown-up, make up a party. Type its date with slashes and its time with a colon, then type the date again with the month in words. Ask which order your forms and family use, month first or day first, and check yours.
For grown-upsAsk which order your family's forms use, month first or day first, and check a real date together.
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