Building With Dad, Read Aloud Level K Unit 1 Book 1: Houghton Mifflin Journeys

A little boy joins his father at a construction site.

Dad’s helping to build a new school, and he takes his son to watch its progress. They see lots of machines at work: a dump truck, a backhoe, an earthmover, a giant grader, a steamroller, a cement mixer, a crane, and more. Finally, the school is finished—just in time for the first day. Bill Thomson’s exquisite illustrations, rendered in acrylic paint and colored pencils, are delivered in a double-spread vertical format, which, when the book is turned sideways, bring this building experience to life with unprecedented dramatic perspective.

Carol Nevius lives in Coral Springs Florida, with her husband, Hugh, and their three children. She teaches Language Arts at Westglades Middle School.

Bill Thomson lives in Southington, Connecticut, with his wife, Diann, and their three sons. He is Assistant Professor of Illustration at the University of Hartford.