Saturday, August 9, 2014

A Few Favorite Books from our Truck Unit

As our time learning about trucks is drawing to a close, I feel I want to share some of our favorite books we've read.  I like all of these books (as does Gordon Lee) because they are not only cute with enticing illustrations, but they are also very informative and educational..also while being entertaining.  

#1 Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site by Sherri Dusky Rinker 
I like this book for so many reasons! First of all, it's an excellent bedtime story.  The book names each construction vehicle by its real name, and it explains what each one does.

This is only a small portion of the part on the dump truck (it's a big spread of 4 pictures over 2 pages).  But you can see it shows what he does.  Each truck does one last job before going to sleep.
I just feel this book is a real gem.  And if you have a little boy (or girl) like mine who is interested in construction, it's a fun and interesting book.

#2 I Drive a Semitruck- by, Sarah Bridges
This was one of Gordon Lee's first choices to read as he happily declared that this was like his Aunt Terrie and Uncle Tony's truck. We had another book about semitrucks, but the illustrations in this one were much more kid-friendly.  Therefore, it grabbed and held his attention better than the other one.

A driver named Tyler goes through his day as a truck driver.  He explains, in easy-to-understand terms what driving a semitruck is like.



#3 Get to Work Trucks! by Don Carter
This one 
This is another cute one that names each machine and explains what it does.  

When we are on the page where they are driving to work, Gordon Lee likes to point to each one and name what it is.
And on every page after they start working, there is a turtle trying to observe the construction. Gordon Lee finds this interesting and will say, "Mommy, I think this is a reptile book too!"


Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Learning as We Go

This week, Gordon Lee and I are learning all about work vehicles of all kinds.  We just got our books yesterday, and we have read about 5 so far.  This morning, we were out running some errands when everyone's favorite orange road markers showed up.  Great, I think to myself, just what I need...construction! 

Meanwhile, a tiny voice in the backseat calls out (with all of the enthusiasm his little body can contain), "Mommy! Mommy! Mommy! Look! Those are the trucks in my books! Look! Look! Look! It's a dump truck! Look! It's a digger! Oh my goodness! It's all the trucks!"

Suddenly, my perspective changed--impromptu learning opportunity! So I pulled over in a nearby parking lot where there was an excavator conveniently parked and not being operated.  Gordon Lee wanted his picture with it.

(In this picture, he is trying to explain that this is a "really big excavator").

Meanwhile, across the street, we get to witness these vehicles in action.
We see on vehicle digging up dirt and putting it in the bed of (what I have recently learned is) an articulated truck.  This truck then took the soil over to where a front loader was also working.  Clearly, we took a picture.  The two construction workers probably thought we were weird for taking pictures of construction, and they in turn took a picture of us.  It was all good in the end.  Gordon Lee called out, "Hey! That's teamwork!" 

We then started seeking out construction just so he could see the trucks in action.  You never know when a "road block" will become an opportunity to learn.