If you have a school-age child, you probably feel that your whole day is stitched together by time words: “Five more minutes”, “We’re late”, “Dinner in half an hour”.
Now imagine a chunk of those moments happening in Chinese instead.
That’s really what this guide is about. Not a big grammar lecture, but giving your child a small toolkit so that “time in Chinese” shows up in real life: on rushed school mornings, sleepy bedtimes, and weekend screen-time negotiations.
This guide is written for families raising kids roughly between 3 and 15 who are learning Mandarin. We’ll walk through 15 high-frequency phrases that cover:
Asking and telling the time
Talking about daily routines
Being polite (and firm) about “too late”, “wait a bit”, and “don’t be late”
For Every(每个)phrase you’ll see:
Chinese characters + pinyin
A plain explanation
A short parent–child mini-dialogue you can actually try
You don’t need perfect tones or super formal sentences. If these phrases appear again and again in your home, your child will slowly “feel” how time in Chinese works—very much like they did in their first language, just with different sounds.
Phrase 1: 现在几点？ (xiànzài jǐ diǎn) – “What time is it now?”
Let’s start with the most useful question in the set.
Meaning: “What time is it now?”
现在 = now, 几点 = what hour / what time
Sometimes native speakers drop 现在 and just say 几点了？, which is very casual. For children learning, keeping 现在 makes the pattern clearer.
Try this at home
Parent (looking at the clock on purpose):
现在几点？ xiànzài jǐ diǎn? What time is it now?
If your child answers in English at first, that’s okay. Step one is simply letting their brain register that this question in Chinese is “the time question”. Over a week or two, they’ll often start repeating it back.
Phrase 2: 现在是……点。 (xiànzài shì … diǎn) – “It’s … o’clock.”
Here’s the basic answer pattern to match Phrase 1.
Structure: 现在是 + number + 点
Examples:
现在是七点。It’s seven o’clock.
现在是八点。It’s eight o’clock.
You can treat this as a slot where only the hour changes.
Mini-dialogue
Parent:
现在几点？ What time is it now?
Child (you can help them at first):
现在是七点。 xiànzài shì qī diǎn. It’s seven o’clock.
You can also reverse roles. Kids usually love being the one who “knows the time” and correcting the parent.
Phrase 3: ……点半 (… diǎn bàn) – “Half past …”
Most families talk about “half past” at least once a day: get up at half past seven, class at half past four, and so on.
Structure: number + 点半
Examples:
七点半 – 7:30
八点半 – 8:30
九点半 – 9:30
Notice there’s no “thirty minutes” word here. 半 literally means “half”.
Mini-dialogue
Parent:
明天你几点起床？ míngtiān nǐ jǐ diǎn qǐchuáng? What time do you get up tomorrow?
Child (with your prompt):
七点半起床。 qī diǎn bàn qǐchuáng. I get up at half past seven.
If that full sentence feels long, let them start with just “七点半” and you add 起床.
Phrase 4: ……点……分 (… diǎn … fēn) – “… [hours] … [minutes].”
Sooner or later a child will want to say something like “3:25” or “6:55”, so we need a way to plug minutes in.
Structure: number + 点 + number + 分
Examples:
七点十分 – 7:10
三点二十分 – 3:20
六点五十五分 – 6:55
In everyday speech, people sometimes drop 分, but keeping it for learners makes everything less confusing.
Mini-dialogue
Parent:
现在几点？ What time is it?
Child:
三点二十分。 sān diǎn èrshí fēn. It’s three twenty.
You can choose two or three “family times” (maybe dinner and bedtime) and practise only those first instead of every possible combination.
Phrase 5: 差……分……点 (chà … fēn … diǎn) – “… minutes to …”
This is a little trickier, so it’s perfect for slightly older kids who already feel comfortable with basic time in Chinese.
Structure: 差 + [minutes] 分 + [hour] 点
Examples:
差十分八点 – ten to eight
差五分三点 – five to three
差 literally means “to lack / short of”.
Mini-dialogue
Parent, when leaving the house:
差十分八点了，我们要走了。 chà shí fēn bā diǎn le, wǒmen yào zǒu le. It’s ten to eight, we need to go.
The first few times, your child might just hear this as one long sound. That’s totally fine. They’ll gradually start spotting the number they recognise inside.
Phrase 6: 早上七点 / 下午三点 (zǎoshang qī diǎn / xiàwǔ sān diǎn)
Now we add “time of day” words to make everything sound like real life instead of a maths problem.
Common ones:
早上 / 上午 – morning
中午 – noon / midday
下午 – afternoon
晚上 – evening
半夜 – late night
Examples
早上七点 – 7:00 in the morning
下午三点 – 3:00 in the afternoon
晚上九点 – 9:00 at night
Mini-dialogue
Parent:
你早上七点起床，还是七点半起床？ nǐ zǎoshang qī diǎn qǐchuáng, háishì qī diǎn bàn qǐchuáng? Do you get up at 7:00 or 7:30 in the morning?
Child:
早上七点起床。 zǎoshang qī diǎn qǐchuáng. I get up at seven in the morning.
You can let them draw a simple daily schedule with pictures of a sun, school bag, dinner plate, moon, and then add these time in Chinese phrases underneath.
Phrase 7: 我……点起床。 (wǒ … diǎn qǐchuáng) – “I get up at …”
We’re moving into routine sentences now. Kids usually love talking about when they wake up (or when they wish they could wake up).
Structure: 我 + [time] + 起床
Examples:
我七点起床。I get up at seven.
我六点半起床。I get up at six thirty.
Mini-dialogue
Parent:
你几点起床？ nǐ jǐ diǎn qǐchuáng? What time do you get up?
Child:
我七点起床。 wǒ qī diǎn qǐchuáng. I get up at seven.
Even if they’re tired, repeating this once as you set the alarm together makes time in Chinese feel tied to something real.
Phrase 8: 我……点上学。 (wǒ … diǎn shàngxué) – “I go to school at …”
School arrival time is another anchor point in a child’s day.
Structure: 我 + [time] + 上学
Examples:
我八点上学。I go to school at eight.
我八点半上学。I go to school at eight thirty.
Mini-dialogue
Parent (on the way out the door):
我们八点上学，对不对？ wǒmen bā diǎn shàngxué, duì bú duì? We go to school at eight, right?
Child:
对，八点上学。 duì, bā diǎn shàngxué. Yes, at eight.
This kind of tiny check-in keeps both the schedule and the language clear.
Phrase 9: 我……点放学。 (wǒ … diǎn fàngxué) – “School finishes at …”
放学 is one of those very “kid” words; it basically smells like freedom.
Structure: 我 + [time] + 放学
Examples:
我三点放学。My school finishes at three.
我三点半放学。My school finishes at three thirty.
Mini-dialogue
Parent:
你今天几点放学？ nǐ jīntiān jǐ diǎn fàngxué? What time does school finish today?
Child:
我三点半放学。 wǒ sān diǎn bàn fàngxué. It finishes at three thirty.
You can then connect this to how long it takes to get home, in either language, so your child sees time as a whole story.
Phrase 10: 我们……点吃晚饭。 (wǒmen … diǎn chī wǎnfàn) – “We eat dinner at …”
Mealtimes are predictable, so they’re perfect places to repeat time in Chinese without effort.
Structure: 我们 + [time] + 吃晚饭
Example: 我们六点吃晚饭。We eat dinner at six.
You can easily switch out the meal word:
我们七点吃早饭。We eat breakfast at seven.
中午十二点吃午饭。We eat lunch at twelve.
Mini-dialogue
Parent:
记得哦，我们六点吃晚饭。 jìdé o, wǒmen liù diǎn chī wǎnfàn. Remember, we eat dinner at six.
Child:
六点吃晚饭。 liù diǎn chī wǎnfàn. Dinner at six.
If you keep that sentence on a sticky note near the dining table, it becomes visual as well as spoken.
Phrase 11: 我……点睡觉。 (wǒ … diǎn shuìjiào) – “I go to bed at …”
Here comes the big one: bedtime. Most parents have some version of this conversation almost every evening.
Structure: 我 + [time] + 睡觉
Examples:
我九点睡觉。I go to sleep at nine.
我九点半睡觉。I go to sleep at nine thirty.
Mini-dialogue
Parent:
今天几点睡觉？九点还是九点半？ jīntiān jǐ diǎn shuìjiào? jiǔ diǎn háishì jiǔ diǎn bàn? What time are you going to bed today, nine or nine thirty?
Child (you give the acceptable choices):
九点睡觉。 jiǔ diǎn shuìjiào. I’ll go to bed at nine.
Letting them choose between two times keeps some sense of control while the routine stays consistent.
Phrase 12: 等一下 / 五分钟后 (děng yíxià / wǔ fēnzhōng hòu)
Now we move to “waiting” phrases, which kids know very well in their first language.
等一下 – wait a moment / hold on
五分钟后 – in five minutes
十分钟后 – in ten minutes
Mini-dialogue
Child:
我现在要看动画片！ wǒ xiànzài yào kàn dònghuàpiàn! I want to watch cartoons now!
Parent:
等一下，五分钟后可以。 děng yíxià, wǔ fēnzhōng hòu kěyǐ. Wait a bit, in five minutes you can.
You can check the clock together, count down roughly, and then say “五分钟到了” when the time is up, keeping the whole thing inside time in Chinese.
Phrase 13: 太晚了。 (tài wǎn le) – “It’s too late.”
Short, direct, and extremely usable.
太 – too (too much)
晚 – late
Mini-dialogue
Parent:
太晚了，我们该睡觉了。 tài wǎn le, wǒmen gāi shuìjiào le. It’s too late, we should go to bed.
You may hear this bounce back at you one day: your child might tell you “太晚了” when you’re still working or scrolling.
Phrase 14: 早一点 / 晚一点 (zǎo yìdiǎn / wǎn yìdiǎn)
These two are perfect for negotiating time in a polite way.
早一点 – a bit earlier
晚一点 – a bit later
Mini-dialogue
Child:
可以晚一点睡觉吗？ kěyǐ wǎn yìdiǎn shuìjiào ma? Can I go to bed a bit later?
Parent:
今天不行，明天可以早一点起床。 jīntiān bù xíng, míngtiān kěyǐ zǎo yìdiǎn qǐchuáng. Not today, but tomorrow you can get up a bit earlier.
This kind of exchange shows that time in Chinese isn’t just about numbers; it’s also about feelings and compromise.
Phrase 15: 准时 / 不要迟到 (zhǔnshí / búyào chídào)
Finally, two phrases about being on time—something every parent cares about, especially when classes or buses are involved.
准时 – on time / punctual
不要迟到 – don’t be late
Mini-dialogue
Parent, before class:
我们要准时到，八点不要迟到。 wǒmen yào zhǔnshí dào, bā diǎn búyào chídào. We need to arrive on time; don’t be late for eight o’clock.
Child:
好，我八点准时到。 hǎo, wǒ bā diǎn zhǔnshí dào. Okay, I’ll be there at eight on time.
This is especially useful if your child takes online classes with set login times across time zones.
Bringing time in Chinese into your family’s day (and how LingoAce fits in)
You don’t have to use all 15 phrases at once; that would feel like homework for everyone. A more realistic path might look something like:
Week 1–2: Focus on Phrases 1–4 (asking and telling the time).
Week 3–4: Add routine sentences (Phrases 6–11).
Week 5–6: Layer on the “feeling” words (Phrases 12–15: waiting, “too late”, earlier / later, punctual).
Choose the ones that match your child’s age and your real life. A five-year-old might only say “七点半” and “睡觉”. A twelve-year-old can handle “我三点半放学” and “不要迟到” without much trouble.
Many parents—even Chinese-heritage parents—don’t feel fully confident explaining grammar in Mandarin, and that’s absolutely normal. You can handle the home phrases, and someone else can handle the structured teaching.
That “someone else” can be LingoAce.
Our online Chinese lessons for kids aged 3–15 are designed to:
Turn topics like time, numbers, and daily routines into games, stories, and role-plays
Match teachers to your child’s age, level, and personality
Work across time zones in the US, Australia, Singapore, and Japan so “class time” actually fits your schedule
If you’d like a concrete, low-pressure next step:
Pick three phrases from this list that feel natural for your family.
Use them once a day for a week—nothing fancy, just real life.
Then consider booking a trial lesson with LingoAce, so your child can try these same time in Chinese patterns with a trained teacher and see how they sound in a full conversation.
A handful of phrases at home plus professional guidance when you need it—that combination is often what keeps kids moving forward in Mandarin without burning out either the child or the parent.
