Math lesson plan · 4th grade (Year 5 in England) · 45 minutes
Read bus and train timetables
Statistics and probability
CCSS 4.MD.A.2England: Y5 StatisticsEngland: Y5 Measurement
Objective and success criteria
Students will: Read bus and train timetables.
- I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
- I can explain each step and say why it works.
- I can check my answer and spot a mistake.
Before and after
Needs first: 12-hour and 24-hour clock; Find start and end times
Leads to: the next skill in this area.
Materials: Squared paper for charts, Class survey data, Sticky notes for a live chart, Mini whiteboards and pens, Printed student sheet (below).
Warm-up · 5 min
- Quick retrieval from earlier learning (12-hour and 24-hour clock; Find start and end times). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
- Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
- Write 11:00 p.m. using the 24-hour clock. Type it like 14:05. → 23:00Prompt: For p.m. times, add 12 to the hour.
- Priya's school trip lasted 1 h 50 min and finished at 2:45. What time did it start? Type it like 2:35. → 12:55Prompt: Count back from the end time.
- A train leaves at 19:40. What is this on a 12-hour clock? Type it like 2:05 (it is p.m.). → 7:40Prompt: Subtract 12 from the hour.
Hook · 5 min
- Take a quick class survey (favorite fruit, travel to school) and ask what the results tell us.
- Share the objective: Read bus and train timetables. Read the success criteria together.
I do: model it · 10 min
- Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
- Example: Bus timetable: Park Road 09:55, Library 10:10, Market 10:30, Station 10:45. How many minutes does the bus take from Park Road to Station?
- Step 1: 09:55 → 10:45
- Step 2: 50 minutes
- Answer: 50
- Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.
We do: guided practice · 10 min
- Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
- Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
- Bus timetable: Park Road 15:00, Library 15:15, Market 15:45, Station 16:05. How many minutes does the bus take from Park Road to Market? → 45Prompt: Find the two times in the timetable.
- Trains leave at 07:15, 07:30, 07:45, 08:00, 08:15. Mei arrives at the platform at 07:22. How many minutes until the next train? → 8Prompt: Find the first train at or after the arrival time.
You do: independent practice · 10 min
- Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
- Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.
The 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.
Exit ticket · 5 min
- Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
- Bus timetable: Park Road 11:40, Library 11:55, Market 12:10, Station 12:35. How many minutes does the bus take from Library to Station? → 40Prompt: Find the two times in the timetable.
- Trains leave at 08:20, 08:35, 08:50, 09:05, 09:20. Amara arrives at the platform at 09:04. How many minutes until the next train? → 1Prompt: Find the first train at or after the arrival time.
Watch out for
- Forgetting to put data in order before finding the median.
- Reading a bar's height wrongly when the scale goes up in 2s or 5s.
Support and stretch
Support
- Review first: 12-hour and 24-hour clock.
- Use concrete materials: squared paper for charts.
- Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
- Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.
Stretch
- Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
- Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.
Homework and more practice
Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/math/grade-4.
Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder