🕒 Lesson 3.2: Telling the Time, Days & He/She (-s)

Now you can talk about your own daily routine. Let's add a clock and a calendar — and learn to talk about other people. In English, when we say what he, she, or it does, we add a little -s to the verb. Learn these three things and you can describe anyone's day.

📚 What You'll Learn

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

Tell the time in English — the easy digital way and the classic "past/to" way
Name the seven days of the week and spell them with capital letters
Use the present simple third person -s for he / she / it
Choose the right preposition of time: at, on, or in

⏱️ Estimated Time: ~55 minutes

🎯 Project: Describe a friend's or family member's daily routine out loud, using he/she + the time + the days of the week (e.g. "She gets up at seven. On Monday she works…").

In This Lesson

🔤 New Words in This Lesson

Here are some useful words from this lesson. Tap 🔊 to hear a word.

o'clock — a full hour (3:00)
quarter — fifteen minutes
half past — thirty minutes after the hour
noon — twelve in the day (midday)
midnight — twelve at night
weekday — a day from Monday to Friday
weekend — Saturday and Sunday
preposition — a small word like at, on, in

Why Time, Days & He/She?

In the last lesson you learned to say what you do every day: "I get up at seven." But you often need two more things: a clock and a calendar. When does the store open? What day is the class? What time does the bus leave? These are everyday questions. Today you can answer them.

You also take a big step in grammar. Talking about yourself is one skill. Talking about other people is another. When we say what he, she, or it does, English adds a small -s to the verb: I work → she works. It is a tiny letter, but it is one of the most important patterns in English.

🧠 Mindset

That little -s is the number-one thing beginners forget — and that is fine. Even people who speak English for years sometimes drop it when they speak fast. You will not learn it in one day, and you don't need to. Notice it, practice it, and be kind to yourself when you miss it. Every time you catch the mistake, your brain is learning. Progress, not perfection. 🌱

Telling the Time

To ask the time, we say: "What time is it?" To answer, we start with "It's…" There are two ways to say the time. Good news: you can always use the easy one.

The easy way: just say the numbers (digital)

Read the clock just as you see it, left number then right number. This always works, and everyone understands it.

3:00 → "three o'clock"
3:30 → "three thirty"
3:15 → "three fifteen"
3:45 → "three forty-five"
7:05 → "seven oh five"
9:20 → "nine twenty"

💡 A small note

For minutes under ten, English speakers often say "oh" for the zero: 7:05 is "seven oh five." The "oh" is the sound of the letter O. It stands for zero.

The classic way: o'clock, past & to

You will also hear people use these words. It is good to understand them, even if you like the easy way when you speak.

o'clock — only for a full hour: 3:00 = "three o'clock."
quarter past — 15 minutes after: 3:15 = "quarter past three."
half past — 30 minutes after: 3:30 = "half past three."
quarter to — 15 minutes before the next hour: 3:45 = "quarter to four."
past — minutes after the hour: 3:10 = "ten past three."
to — minutes before the next hour: 3:40 = "twenty to four."

⚠️ The big idea: "past" goes up, "to" goes down

For the first half hour (minutes 1–30), we count past the hour we just had. After the half hour (31–59), we count how many minutes to the next hour. So 3:40 is "twenty to four" — it is twenty minutes before four o'clock.

Here is a table with both ways side by side. Cover the right columns and test yourself.

Clock	Easy way (digital)	Classic way (past / to)
3:00	three o'clock	three o'clock
3:05	three oh five	five past three
3:10	three ten	ten past three
3:15	three fifteen	quarter past three
3:30	three thirty	half past three
3:40	three forty	twenty to four
3:45	three forty-five	quarter to four
3:50	three fifty	ten to four

✅ Noon & midnight

12:00 in the day is noon (also called midday). 12:00 at night is midnight. So "let's meet at noon" means twelve in the middle of the day. "Midnight" is twelve when everyone is asleep.

Days of the Week

There are seven days. Say them out loud in order — the rhythm helps you remember them. The pronunciation hint shows the sound.

Monday /ˈmʌndeɪ/ — MUN-day
Tuesday /ˈtjuːzdeɪ/ — TYOOZ-day
Wednesday /ˈwɛnzdeɪ/ — WENZ-day
Thursday /ˈθɜːrzdeɪ/ — THURZ-day
Friday /ˈfraɪdeɪ/ — FRY-day
Saturday /ˈsætərdeɪ/ — SAT-ur-day
Sunday /ˈsʌndeɪ/ — SUN-day

⚠️ Days always start with a CAPITAL letter

In English, we always write the days of the week with a big first letter: Monday, not monday. This is true even in the middle of a sentence: "I work on Friday." Also watch the spelling of Wednesday — we say "WENZ-day," but there is a silent d in the middle.

💡 Weekday vs. weekend

The five working days — Monday to Friday — are the weekdays. Saturday and Sunday are the weekend. So "I work on weekdays and rest on the weekend" is very natural to say.

At / On / In — Prepositions of Time

Small words, big job. English uses three little words to add a time to a sentence. Each one has its own rule.

Word	Use it for…	Examples
at	a clock time; night	at 7 o'clock · at 8:30 · at noon · at night
on	a day or date; the weekend	on Monday · on Friday · on Saturday morning · on July 4th · on the weekend
in	a part of the day; a month; a season; a year	in the morning · in the afternoon · in July · in summer · in 2026

💡 A memory trick

Think of the words getting bigger: at a tiny point (a clock time) → on a single day → in a big block of time (a morning, a month, a year). Learn this pair together: "in the morning / in the afternoon / in the evening" but "at night." Night is the odd one out! 🌙

He / She / It + -s

Here is the heart of today's grammar. In the present simple, when the subject is he, she, or it, we add -s to the verb. For everyone else (I, you, we, they), the verb stays plain.

Subject	Verb "work"	Example
I	work	I work in a store.
You	work	You work hard.
He	works	He works at night.
She	works	She works on Monday.
It	works	The clock works.
We	work	We work together.
They	work	They work at home.

Spelling rules for the -s

Most verbs just take a plain -s. A few verbs need a small change. Here are the three rules.

Rule	When	Examples
Add -s	most verbs	work → works · play → plays · read → reads · start → starts
Add -es	after s, x, ch, sh, o	watch → watches · go → goes · do → does · finish → finishes · fix → fixes
Change -y → -ies	consonant + y	study → studies · try → tries · fly → flies

⚠️ One irregular verb to remember: have → has

have does not follow the rule. For he/she/it it becomes has: "She has breakfast at eight." (Not "haves.") Just learn this one.

Negatives & questions: the -s "disappears"

Here is the surprise for almost every learner. When you make a negative or a question, the -s moves onto a helper word (does). The main verb goes back to its plain base form.

Type	Form	Example
Positive	he/she + verb-s	She works on Monday.
Negative	doesn't + base verb	She doesn't work on Sunday.
Question	Does + subject + base verb?	Does he get up early?
Short answer	Yes, … does / No, … doesn't	Yes, he does. / No, he doesn't.

⚠️ Never say "worksn't" or "doesn't works"

The -s can be in only one place at a time. In a negative or question, does/doesn't already has it. So the main verb is plain:

✅ She doesn't work on Sunday. ❌ ~~She doesn't works.~~
✅ Does he get up early? ❌ ~~Does he gets up early?~~

Phrases & Dialogue

Here are ready-made phrases to ask and answer about time and routines. Say each one out loud.

What time is it? It's half past nine. What time do you get up? What time does she start work? He starts at nine. on Monday on the weekend in the morning Does he work on Sunday? No, he doesn't.

Now listen to two friends talk. See how Mia talks about herself ("I start…") and then about her brother ("He starts…"). Read both parts out loud.

A: What time do you start work?
B: I start at eight in the morning. And I finish at four.
A: And your brother? What time does he start?
B: He starts work at nine. He works in a hospital.
A: Does he work on Sunday?
B: No, he doesn't. He rests on the weekend. But he works on Saturday.
A: When does he get up?
B: Early! He gets up at half past six and he has breakfast at seven.

Model answer — describe one person: "My sister is a teacher. She gets up at six thirty. She has breakfast at seven and she starts work at eight. On Monday and Wednesday she finishes late. She doesn't work on the weekend — she relaxes on Sunday."

Practice & Project

🏋️ Exercise 1: Write the time two ways

Objective: Say each time the easy (digital) way and the classic (past/to) way.

2:00
6:30
8:15
10:45
4:20

✅ Answer

2:00 — two o'clock / two o'clock
6:30 — six thirty / half past six
8:15 — eight fifteen / quarter past eight
10:45 — ten forty-five / quarter to eleven
4:20 — four twenty / twenty past four

🏋️ Exercise 2: Add -s correctly (he/she)

Objective: Use the spelling rules to make the he/she form.

Write the right he/she/it form of each verb:

study
go
watch
play
finish

✅ Answer

study → studies (consonant + y → ies)
go → goes (add -es after o)
watch → watches (add -es after ch)
play → plays (vowel + y, so just add -s — not "plaies")
finish → finishes (add -es after sh)

🏋️ Exercise 3: Fill in at / on / in

Objective: Choose the right preposition of time.

She starts work 9 o'clock.
He doesn't work Sunday.
I read the evening.
My birthday is July.
We relax the weekend.
The cat sleeps night.

✅ Answer

She starts work at 9 o'clock. (clock time)
He doesn't work on Sunday. (a day)
I read in the evening. (part of the day)
My birthday is in July. (a month)
We relax on the weekend. — British English often says at the weekend.
The cat sleeps at night. (night is the odd one out!)

🎯 Your Project: Describe Someone's Day

Pick one person you know — a friend, your mother, a brother, a co-worker. You will describe their daily routine out loud. Use he or she with the -s form, plus times and days. Do it to a partner, a teacher, or your phone.

(3 min) Choose your person. Write down 5 things they do each day, with a time (e.g. "gets up — 7:00").
(3 min) Turn each one into a full sentence with -s: "She gets up at seven."
(3 min) Add at least two days: "On Monday she works. On Sunday she rests."
(3 min) Add one negative: "He doesn't work on the weekend."
(3 min) Say the whole routine out loud, start to finish. Did you record it? Listen and check that every verb has its -s.

✅ Project Completion Checklist

☐ I described at least 5 daily actions
☐ I used he or she with the -s verb form
☐ I included at least two times (e.g. "at seven")
☐ I named at least two days of the week (with capital letters)
☐ I used one negative with doesn't + base verb

🎯 Quick Quiz

Question 1: How do you say 3:45 the classic way?

Question 2: Which sentence is correct?

Tips & Common Mistakes

✅ Do's

When you speak, the easy digital way of telling time ("three forty-five") is always correct. Use it when you are not sure.
Say a whole sentence out loud and listen for the -s on he/she verbs. Train your ear.
Write days of the week with a capital letter, every time.

❌ Common Mistakes

⚠️ Watch Out

Dropping the -s: ❌ ~~He work at night.~~ → ✅ He works at night. This is the #1 beginner slip.
Doubling the -s: ❌ ~~Does he works?~~ → ✅ Does he work? The -s is on does, so the verb stays plain.
"have" → "has": ❌ ~~She haves lunch.~~ → ✅ She has lunch.
Wrong preposition: ❌ ~~in Monday~~ / ~~on the morning~~ → ✅ on Monday · in the morning · at night.

📓 Learning Journal

Keep up your learning journal — a notebook or a note on your phone. After every lesson, take five minutes. Write down:

Key concepts you learned
Things that clicked for you
Questions or confusion points to revisit
Ideas you want to try
Your progress and feelings about learning English

✍️ This lesson's prompt: Write about your own daily schedule. Use times and days. What time do you get up? When do you work or study? What do you do on Saturday and Sunday? Then write three sentences about another person with he or she — and check that every verb has its -s. 🕒

📝 Lesson Summary

🎓 Key Takeaways

To tell the time, ask "What time is it?" and answer "It's…" — the digital way (three forty-five) always works.
Past counts up in the first half hour; to counts down to the next hour. 12:00 = noon (day) or midnight (night).
The seven days start with a capital letter; Monday–Friday are weekdays, Saturday–Sunday are the weekend.
Use at for clock times, on for days, in for parts of the day/months — but at night.
For he/she/it, add -s to the verb (have → has). In negatives & questions, doesn't/does takes the -s and the main verb stays plain.

🎉 What You've Accomplished

You can now add a clock and a calendar to your English. Even bigger — you can talk about other people, not just yourself. You can describe someone's whole day with the right times, days, and that important -s. That is real, useful English. It is a big step. 🎉

❓ Common Questions at This Stage

Should I say "three forty-five" or "quarter to four"?

Both are correct and both are common. The digital way ("three forty-five") is simpler and never wrong. Use it when you speak. Learn the "past/to" way so you understand it when others use it.

I keep forgetting the -s on he/she. Is that a problem?

It is the most normal beginner mistake there is — even fluent learners drop it sometimes. People will still understand you. Keep noticing it and saying it. Slowly it becomes easy. Confusion is part of learning, not a sign you are failing.

Is it "on the weekend" or "at the weekend"?

Both! American English says "on the weekend," and British English says "at the weekend." This course uses American English, so we say on the weekend. Choose one and use it every time.

🔭 Looking Ahead

In Lesson 3.3 we move from time to place: "There is / There are — My Home." You learn to describe what is in a room and around your house. Then you can say where things are and how many there are.

✅ Before the Next Lesson

Say five different times out loud, both the easy way and the past/to way.
Say the seven days of the week from memory, in order.
Describe one person's morning with three he/she verbs — check each -s.
Write your Learning Journal entry.

🌟 Encouragement for the Journey

Time, days, and the little -s — these are in almost every English conversation. You just added them to your toolkit. Don't worry about being perfect with that -s yet. Just keep practicing. You are building something real, one lesson at a time. See you in Lesson 3.3! 👋