15 Second Timer
Fifteen seconds for whiteboard answers, quick sketches and fast games.
Activity
Time
Station rotations
4 × 15 seconds, 60s to switch · 15 seconds total
Press Show to class for the board or projector. The disc shrinks and turns yellow, then red. Space starts and pauses. The screen stays awake while the timer runs.
Time's up!
Great work, everyone.
What a 15 second timer is good for in class
- Mini whiteboards: write your answer, then hold it up when the timer ends.
- A quick sketch or doodle response in a vocabulary game.
- Stretch breaks between test sections: one stretch per fifteen-second round.
Running one of these every day? See the brain break timer and test timer for set-up tips.
How the 15 second timer looks on the board
The disc starts full and shrinks clockwise. Its colour tells the class how much time is left, even from the back of the room:
| Disc | Clock shows | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Green | From 0:15 down to 0:08 | More than half the time left |
| Yellow | From 0:08 down to 0:03 | Less than half left |
| Red | The last 3 seconds | Final 20 percent |
Sounds
- No 1-minute warning chime: it only plays on timers longer than 90 seconds.
- Three short blips at 0:03, 0:02 and 0:01.
- A rising end chime, “Time's up!” on the board and a burst of confetti (skipped if your device is set to reduce motion).
Running 15 second timer rounds back to back
Turn on Station rotations to repeat the 15 second timer as rounds, with a short rest between them. With a 15 second rest:
| Rounds | Work | Rest | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 45 s | 30 s | 1:15 |
| 5 | 1 min 15 s | 1 min | 2:15 |
| 8 | 2 min | 1 min 45 s | 3:45 |
Questions teachers ask
Can I set 15 seconds if the buttons go up in tens?
Yes. Type 0 in the minutes box and 15 in the seconds box. The plus and minus buttons step by ten seconds, but the boxes take any value from 10 seconds up to 3 hours.
How do I start a 15 second timer?
This page is already set to 0:15. Press Start or the space bar. To put it on the board, press Show to class: the controls disappear and the timer fills the screen. Tap the screen to pause, press Esc to exit.
When does the 15 second timer turn yellow and red?
It turns yellow with 0:08 left and red with 0:03 left. You can turn colour changes off so the disc stays green.
What sounds does the 15 second timer make?
No warning chime (the timer is too short for one), but 3-2-1 blips and an end chime. Sound only starts after you press a button, and the speaker button mutes everything.