Papi is a bricklayer, and he works hard every day to help build the city, brick by brick. His son, Luis, works hard too–in school, book by book. Papi climbs scaffolds, makes mortar, and shovels sand. Luis climbs on the playground and molds clay into tiny bricks to make buildings, just like Papi. Together, they dream big about their future as they work to make those dreams come true. And then one Saturday, Papi surprises Luis with something special he’s built for their family, brick by brick.
WATCH and LISTEN to Heidi Woodward Sheffield read her book Brick by Brick:
ACTION RHYME: Building a House
Building a house is lots of work, (wipe brow)
First, you dig up lots of dirt. (pretend to dig)
Then you pour a concrete floor, (touch floor)
And pound boards with nails galore. (pretend to hammer)
Doors and windows go in fast, (draw squares in air with finger)
Now your house is done at last. (clasp hands together above head in victory)
ACTION SONG: Construction Worker Song (tune: Here We Go ‘Round the Mulberry Bush)
This is the way we pound the nails,
pound our nails, pound the nails.
This is the way we pound the nails,
So early in the morning.
Additional verses:
…saw the wood
…turn the screwdriver
…drill a hole
…stack the bricks
…stir the paint
…paint the walls
BUILD your own skyscrapers or cities with your plastic bricks and blocks. Don’t forget to take pictures and send them to us on Facebook or Twitter!
COLLAGE a cityscape using colorful scraps of paper and even pictures cut out of magazines. You can use a glue stick or liquid school glue to paste the pictures and paper scraps onto a big piece of construction paper.
MAKE a colorful card for the father or father figures in your life!