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Building & Home Construction for Young Children

Updated on May 31, 2016
iijuan12 profile image

I am a Christian. I was an 8th-grade American History teacher. I am currently a freelance writer, public speaker, & homeschooling mom of 10.

Constructing a bird house
Constructing a bird house

Do you have a young child who loves tools and building things? Build and paint a bird house, construct a house out of pretzels, and more in this fun, hands-on lesson exploring the world of home construction! I created this "lesson" to do as a two hour "play date" with my young child and some of his friends (ages 3-5). Use this fun lesson with your class, family, or homeschool co-op group!

Dreaming of Building a House

1. Pray. Read and discuss I Corinthians 14:40.

2. Read Block City by Robert Louis Stevenson.

Block City
Block City
This has delightful illustrations that accompany a whimsical poem written by Robert Louis Stevenson. It is the perfect motivation to get the children's creativity flowing and to get them excited about building with blocks.
 

House of Blocks

3. Tell the children that they get to design their own neighborhood. Have the children use blocks to each build a house.

YOU WILL NEED: blocks

Melissa & Doug Wooden Building Set - 100 Blocks in 4 Colors and 9 Shapes
Melissa & Doug Wooden Building Set - 100 Blocks in 4 Colors and 9 Shapes
We used some of these blocks for building houses. They are classic wooden blocks that come in a few different shapes. These are one of the sets of toys that continue to get played with over the many years we have owned them.
 

How a House Is Built

4. Read How a House Is Built by Gail Gibbons. Briefly review the steps in building a house.

How a House Is Built (New & Updated)
How a House Is Built (New & Updated)
This was our favorite picture book on the process that goes into building a house. It gives a simple overview.
 
Tool Box
Tool Box | Source

How a House Is Built

4. Read How a House Is Built by Gail Gibbons. Briefly review the steps in building a house.

5. If desired, let children put on toy construction worker hats. Pass around tools that were pictured in the book and ask the children what each one was used for in the book we just read.

YOU WILL NEED: tools (real ones or toys) and construction worker hats (optional)

Constructing bird houses
Constructing bird houses

Building a Bird House

6. Build a bird house and paint it. As you build the bird house, remind the children that you must follow the directions in the correct order to make the birdhouse just like the workers in the book had to build a person's house in the correct order.

YOU WILL NEED: a bird house kit or materials to make and paint your own birdhouse (1 per child if you can afford it or 1 for the entire group) & safety goggles (optional)

Image credit: http://olympiawa.gov/plans/comp-plan/transportation
Image credit: http://olympiawa.gov/plans/comp-plan/transportation

Noah's Ark

7. Ask children if they can think of anything that was built in the Bible. Children might suggest Noah's Ark, the Tower of Babel, Zerubbabel building the wall, or Solomon building the temple. Look through pictures of Noah's Ark story book and have the children tell me the story. Take a walk outside to measure out the length of Noah's ark (450" x 75"). We walked along the sidewalks outside our house and walked 450 steps to the west and 75 steps to the north.

Creating an edible house using pretzel sticks, graham crackers, and edible peanut butter play-dough
Creating an edible house using pretzel sticks, graham crackers, and edible peanut butter play-dough

Edible Houses

8. (Check for peanut allergies before using peanut butter!) Let children construct houses using pretzel sticks, cheerios, and graham crackers. If desired, you can let them use peanut butter play-dough*, peanut butter, or frosting to hold the house together. Let children eat their edible homes. (*To make peanut butter play-dough as pictured to the right, mix together 1 cup of peanut butter, 1/2 cup of honey, and 2 cups of powdered sugar.)

YOU WILL NEED: pretzel sticks, cheerios, graham crackers, peanut butter play-dough*, peanut butter or frosting (optional), plastic knives (optional), plates or napkins, & cups for water

9. Review what we learned today about orderliness and construction.

Click thumbnail to view full-size
Building a House by Byron Barton - Images credit: amazon.comIf I Built a House by Chris Van DusenThe Three Little Pigs: An Architectural Tale by Steven GuarnacciaA Year at a Construction Site (Time Goes By) by Nicholas HarrisTool Book by Gail GibbonsBruno the Carpenter by Lars KlintingLet's Build a Clubhouse by Marilyn SingerMy Little Red Toolbox by Stephen T. Johnson
Building a House by Byron Barton - Images credit: amazon.com
Building a House by Byron Barton - Images credit: amazon.com
If I Built a House by Chris Van Dusen
If I Built a House by Chris Van Dusen
The Three Little Pigs: An Architectural Tale by Steven Guarnaccia
The Three Little Pigs: An Architectural Tale by Steven Guarnaccia
A Year at a Construction Site (Time Goes By) by Nicholas Harris
A Year at a Construction Site (Time Goes By) by Nicholas Harris
Tool Book by Gail Gibbons
Tool Book by Gail Gibbons
Bruno the Carpenter by Lars Klinting
Bruno the Carpenter by Lars Klinting
Let's Build a Clubhouse by Marilyn Singer
Let's Build a Clubhouse by Marilyn Singer
My Little Red Toolbox by Stephen T. Johnson
My Little Red Toolbox by Stephen T. Johnson

More Great Picture Books on Home Construction

My children and I also really enjoyed reading Building a House by Byron Barton, If I Built a House by Chris Van Dusen, The Three Little Pigs: An Architectural Tale by Steven Guarnaccia, A Year at a Construction Site (Time Goes By) by Nicholas Harris, Tool Book by Gail Gibbons, Bruno the Carpenter by Lars Klinting, and Let's Build a Clubhouse by Marilyn Singer. My Little Red Toolbox by Stephen T. Johnson is especially fun because it includes removable cardboard tools that your children take out of the book and then use on parts of the book. My children LOVE this book!

Looking for all of my lessons written specifically for young children?

Field trip to ride on a horse during the lesson on horses
Field trip to ride on a horse during the lesson on horses

Explore horse breeds, gaits, diet, and more through games, cooking, and activities in the lesson on horses. Create a model lighthouse, play a lighthouse game, read books about lighthouses, "tour" lighthouses using YouTube, and even eat a lighthouse in this fun, hands-on lesson on lighthouses. Act like privates while training at boot camp, paint camo-style hats, set up a tent, battle using army men, and more in this exciting lesson the military.

  • Horse Lesson Plan for Younger Children - Do you have a young child who loves horses? Use this fun, hands-on lesson or play date activity to explore horse breeds, gaits, diet, and more!
  • Building & Home Construction for Young Children - Do you have a young child who loves tools and building things? Build and paint a bird house, construct a house out of pretzels, and more in this fun, hands-on lesson exploring the world of home construction!
  • Butterfly Lesson for Children - Do you have a young child who loves butterflies? Create butterfly crafts and snacks, play butterfly games, and more in this fun, hands-on lesson exploring the amazing world of butterflies!
  • Ladybug Crafts for Kids - Do you have a young child like mine who loves ladybugs? Create easy and adorable ladybug crafts and edible ladybugs, read these delightful ladybug books, watch the short ladybug video clips, and assemble ladybug lapbooks and worksheets during this fun hands-on lesson on ladybugs.
  • Japan Lesson Plan for Younger Children - Make an origami paper crane, a carp fish kite, a Japanese meal, a Japanese doll, and more in this fun hands-on activity about Japan.
  • Lighthouse Lesson - Create a model lighthouse, play a lighthouse game, read books about lighthouses, tour lighthouses using YouTube, and even eat a lighthouse in this fun, hands-on lesson or family activity on lighthouses.
  • Sheep, Wool, & Weaving Lesson - Looking for fun preschool and kindergarten ideas on sheep and wool? Make and eat edible sheep, card and dye wool, paint sheep paintings, and more in this fun activity on sheep and wool!
  • Manners Lesson - Are you looking for a fun and interactive way to teach your children manners and etiquette? Use this fun role-playing lesson to practice manners at meals, on the phone, as a host or hostess, and more!
  • Military Party for Children - Act like privates while training at boot camp, paint camo-style hats, set up a tent, battle using army men, and more in this fun 2 hour lesson, party, or family activity on the military.
  • Laws and Obedience Lesson - Looking for a fun way to help preschoolers learn about obedience and laws? Create and eat edible 10 Commandments, play Cops and Robbers after reading about police officers, act of the fall of Adam and Eve, and more!
  • Illusion & Deception Lesson - Use this fun, hands-on lesson or family activity to explore deception and illusions in art, magic tricks, literature, and more!
  • Attributes of God Lesson for Young Children - Are you wondering how to teach your preschooler or young child about God and His character? Use this fun, hands-on lesson, family activity, or play group time to explore who God is and what He is like!
  • Gingerbread Man Lesson for Kindergarten - Ready for a fun kindergarten literature lesson on The Gingerbread Man? Compare and contrast two versions of the story, decorate gingerbread cookies, create character finger puppets to re-tell the story, and more in this fun literature lesson on The Gingerbread Man!
  • Fun, FREE Hands-on Unit Studies - Looking for all of my lessons and unit studies? Over the years I have posted over 30 science and social-studies based unit studies, compromised of more than 140 lessons. For each lesson I have included activities (with photos), our favorite books and YouTube video clips, lapbook links, and other resources. I posted links to all of my unit studies and lessons at the above link.

Our Favorite YouTube Clips on Building a House & Tools

Also look for the DVD "That's How We Build A House," which is an excellent children's DVD that shows a house being built from start to finish. My active boys were glued to the screen for the whole 30 minutes and learned so much from it!

Konos Curriculum

Would you like to teach this way every day?

Konos Curriculum

I use Konos Curriculum as a springboard from which to plan my lessons. It's a wonderful Christian curriculum and was created by moms with active children! You can even watch free on-line videos as Jessica, one of the co-authors of Konos, walks you through a unit. (Look for the Explanation Videos tab.)

Konos Home School Mentor

If you're new to homeschooling or in need of some fresh guidance, I highly recommend Konos' HomeSchoolMentor.com program! Watch videos on-line of what to do each day and how to teach it in this great hands-on format!

working

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