MILFORD–A new study done by a Connecticut-based company shows that a majority of kids today can’t tell time on a watch.
DiscountWatchStore.com, a 14-year-old online watch retailer that is based out of Milford Connecticut, did the study, which assessed more than 2,000 kids across seven states. The children studied were aged 6 to 12. Only one in 8 kids scored full marks, and only one in 10 owned a watch.
“It is alarming how many children only know what a digital clock reads, and despite an era of digital technology, there will undoubtedly come a time when today’s youth will need to read the time on an analog clock. It is a basic skill every individual should posses,” said DiscountWatchStore.com owner Zai Zhu.
Now, the company is taking action.
On Wednesday, the company announced its new “Easy Time Teller” watch, a custom self-learning watch to help kids learn to read an analog clock. The company also announced it is teaming up with Boys & Girls Clubs of America for “Time Telling Workshops,” educational events designed to reach thousands of children.
The Easy Time Teller is color-coded, with hours blocked out and special hour and minute hands. Children who participate in the workshops will be given a watch. You can also donate to the Kickstarter campaign, which for $18 gets you a watch, or buy one for the retail price of $24.95. The Kickstarter has a $15,000 goal, which would build for 1,500 watches, 750 of which to be handed out at workshops free of charge. Proceeds from the sale of the remaining watches will go to funding further productions and workshops.
Jenn Vega, program director at the Bridgeport Wakeman Boys & Girls Club, said, “Traditional clocks help young people learn and understand times zones, increase math skills and become more aware of the passage of time. These are vital skills that should not get lost as we progress with future technology.”
In just one week the Kickstarter has raised nearly $1,000.
“We’re making progress one community at a time,” Zhu said in a promotional video for the Kickstarter. “The ability to tell time is a skill every individual should possess, and it starts with our children. Help us educate them and get back to an era when time isn’t holding us back.”
