Math & Numbers Episode 9 · October 28, 2026
An Extra Hour After Trick-or-Treating! Daylight Saving Time Explained for Kids
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The big question
Why do we have daylight saving time? And why don’t some countries change their clocks?
Why do the clocks fall back and give us an extra hour? And why don’t some countries change their clocks at all?
Pip the puffin finds out why: Earth’s tilted axis gives us long, warm summer days (and it’s not because we’re closer to the sun!), so we spring forward and fall back. But near the equator, days stay about twelve hours long all year, so most countries there never change their clocks. Spin the globe to see who does and who doesn’t (yes, Hawaii and Arizona skip it, and New Zealand springs forward in September!). Meet the bug scientist who dreamed it up, Ben Franklin (who only joked about it) and the London builder who campaigned for it, watch a whole year of daylight roll by on a 24-hour chart, and learn how your body clock adjusts, with easy tips for the time change. Plus five words to know, a clock hunt and a sunset to watch with a grown-up, and a quiz.
Words to know
axis
Say it: AK-sis
The imaginary line Earth spins around, from the North Pole to the South Pole. Earth’s axis is tilted.
The tilted axis gives us long summer days.
daylight saving time
Say it: DAY-lite SAY-ving tyme
Moving the clocks forward one hour in spring, so there’s an extra hour of evening light.
Spring forward!
standard time
Say it: STAN-derd tyme
The time we go back to when we move the clocks back one hour in the fall.
Fall back!
equator
Say it: ih-KWAY-ter
The imaginary line around Earth’s middle. Near it, days are about twelve hours long all year round.
Most countries near the equator don’t change their clocks.
body clock
Say it: BAH-dee klok
The clock inside you that tells you when to feel sleepy and when to wake up. It’s set by light, especially morning light.
Your body clock can take a few days to catch up after the clocks change.
Bonus words: North Pole, South Pole, season
Quiz time!
Try it at home: Sunset spotter and clock hunt
⏱ A minute a day for a week
You need
- A grown-up
- A notebook
- A clock
Steps
- Every evening this week, notice what time the sun sets. Write it down.
- Is sunset getting earlier or later each day?
- On the day the clocks change, go on a clock hunt together. Phones change by themselves, but the oven, the microwave and some car clocks might need your help!
- Help your body clock: get outside into bright morning sunlight, and turn off screens an hour before bed.
What’s going on? In the fall, sunset creeps earlier every day, and when the clocks fall back it suddenly jumps an hour earlier on the clock.
⚠️ Never look straight at the sun.