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Daylight Saving Time Fun Activities for the Classroom
Christy Walters
February 8, 2026
Though the idea of daylight saving time dates back to the Colonial era (thanks, Ben Franklin!), it didn’t become widely adopted until World War I. Today, each spring, most states “spring forward” by setting clocks ahead one hour. This creates longer evenings and a real-world moment you can use to spark curiosity across science, math, social studies, and ELA.
Whether your students are thrilled about extra daylight or groaning about lost sleep, daylight saving time offers a hook for meaningful instruction. You can use our daylight saving time fun activities to explore earth science concepts like seasons and sunlight, strengthen telling time skills, and support decisions, arguments, and text analysis with high-interest, classroom-ready resources.
[Discover the history of daylight saving time in social studies](id-ss)
Key takeaways:
Daylight saving time connects historical decision-making to modern-day life.
Students can analyze cause-and-effect relationships tied to timekeeping practices.
Build background knowledge using informational text and real-world examples.
Differentiated texts can support instruction across elementary and secondary grade bands.
Daylight saving time is rooted in history and shaped by economic needs, geography, and human behavior. This topic gives you a chance to help students explore why societies make large-scale changes and how those decisions continue to affect our daily lives.
Why do we change the clocks for daylight saving time?
Students can explore the original purpose of daylight saving time and evaluate whether it still serves its intended goals. By examining how the time change affects daily routines, public health, the economy, and wildlife, students can practice connecting historical context to modern-day consequences using evidence from informational texts.
Newsela Knack: Want to teach this concept to your youngest students? Check out the elementary daylight saving time text set, which has the same core ideas at an age-appropriate level to help you build foundational understanding and support early literacy skills!
[Debate the usefulness of the time change in ELA](id-ela)
Key takeaways:
Students can practice argumentative reading and writing using real-world issues.
Paired texts strengthen compare-and-contrast skills across genres.
Poetry supports analysis of theme, imagery, and the author’s craft tied to seasonal changes.
Daylight saving time creates a built-in opportunity for authentic argument, discussion, and text analysis. Because students already experience the time change in their own lives, you can use this topic to strengthen reading comprehension, evidence-based writing, and speaking and listening skills through high-interest ELA lessons.
Should daylight saving time continue each year?
Daylight saving time is often debated because it affects sleep, school schedules, work routines, and overall well-being. Students can evaluate whether the benefits of the time change outweigh the drawbacks by analyzing informational texts and using evidence to support a clear position in discussion and writing.
Posing a guiding question for the debate, like, “How does daylight saving time affect our daily routines and activities?”
Sharing graphic organizers students can use while preparing for the debate—such as a debate outline and a pro/con analysis—to collect evidence and plot their ideas.
Holding an in-class debate about daylight saving time. Share the debate rubric and after-debate reflection for self-analysis after the lesson.
How do authors explain the changing seasons across cultures and genres?
Authors approach seasonal change in different ways depending on purpose, audience, and genre. By examining both literary and informational texts, students can compare how storytelling and nonfiction share ideas about seasons, helping them analyze text structure and the author’s craft.
Share a nonfiction article about the four seasons and how they vary in different parts of the world.
Use a paired text analysis worksheet to have students answer, “What is the text structure of each piece, and how does it affect the author’s purpose?”
How does poetry capture the feeling of seasonal changes?
Poetry uses imagery, mood, and figurative language to express how seasonal transitions feel instead of simply describing what happens. Through spring- and summer-themed poems, students can analyze how poets share emotion and theme while strengthening close reading and interpretation skills.
[Teach students about sunlight, seasons, and energy in science](id-sci)
Key takeaways:
Daylight saving time connects core earth science concepts, like seasons and sunlight, to real-world events.
Students can explore sun/Earth relationships through data, visuals, and informational texts.
Lessons can support students' understanding of topics such as renewable energy and its real-world applications.
Newsela STEM and Generation Genius videos reinforce science and math standards across grade bands.
Daylight saving time connects to Earth science concepts students are already studying, like sun/Earth relationships, seasonal patterns, and energy use. These lessons help you explain why daylight changes throughout the year while reinforcing data analysis, observation, and real-world applications across grade levels.
How is time connected to science and math?
Timekeeping is an extension of scientific observation and mathematical measurements. By exploring how people have tracked time throughout history, students can learn why measuring time accurately matters for understanding natural patterns, coordinating daily life, and studying changes in the world around us.
Students can build background knowledge using articles that explore:
Why does the amount of sunlight we get change during the year?
The length of daylight varies based on Earth’s position, tilt, and movement around the sun. Examining these patterns helps students understand why days are longer in the summer and shorter in winter, and how daylight saving time relates to, but doesn’t cause, these natural changes.
How does daylight affect energy use and renewable resources?
More daylight creates more opportunities to harness renewable energy, especially solar power. This topic helps students connect scientific concepts to real-world solutions by examining how we capture, store, and use sunlight to meet energy needs.
How can science and math videos support students’ understanding of daylight saving time?
Visual instruction helps make abstract concepts like Earth’s motion, light, and elapsed time more concrete. Using Newsela STEM with Generation Genius videos allows you to reinforce science and math standards while making complex ideas more accessible and engaging across grade bands.
Spring forward on lesson planning for the rest of the school year
Daylight saving time is just one example of how timely, real-world topics can make instruction more engaging and meaningful for your students. With the right resources, you can turn everyday events into lessons that build background knowledge, strengthen literacy skills, and deepen understanding of science and math concepts students will use all year.
Newsela’s product suite gives you flexible, classroom-ready content to support instruction across grade levels and subject areas. Whether you’re teaching about seasons, sunlight, telling time, or argumentative writing, you’ll find resources that help you meet standards while keeping students curious and engaged.
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