A_Year_at_a_Construction_Site_Time_Goes_By_by_Nicholas_Harris_z

Demolition
Digging the foundation

Pumping concrete
Placing the floors
Setting the roof timbers
Adding roof tiles
Building a street
Painting the walls

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j Millbrook Press / Minneapolis

First American edition published in 2009 by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.

Copyright © 2004 by Orpheus Books Ltd.

All U.S. rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form
or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of
Lerner Publishing Group, Inc., except for the inclusion of brief quotations in an acknowledged review.

Millbrook Press
A division of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.
241 First Avenue North
Minneapolis, MN 55401 USA

Website address: www.lernerbooks.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Harris, Nicholas, 1956–

A year at a construction site / by Nicholas Harris.

p. cm. -- (Time goes by)

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 978–1–58013–549–8 (lib. bdg. : alk. paper)

1. Building—Juvenile literature. 2. School buildings—Design and construction—Juvenile literature. I. Title.

TH149.H37 2009

690—dc22 2007039036

Manufactured in the United States of America
1 2 3 4 5 6 — BP — 14 13 12 11 10 09

978-0-7613-4675-3

Table of Contents

Introduction 4
6
January: Demolition 8
February: Digging the foundation 10
March: Pumping concrete 12
May: Placing the floors 14
August: Setting the roof timbers 16
October: Adding roof tiles 18
November: Building a street 20
December: Painting the walls 22
Glossary 23
Learn More about Construction 24
A Closer Look 24
Index

THIS IS THE STORYof how

workers build a new school. Their work takes place
during one year. All the pictures have the same view
of the construction site. But each one shows a different
time of year. Lots of things happen during this year. Can you
spot them all?

You can follow all the action on the building site as the

months pass. The calendar on each right-hand page
tells you what month you’ve reached.

4

Introduction

While the work goes on, all sorts of other things are

happening. They are not always part of the plan!
A few small accidents take place. Animals and children

come and go. There’s always something new to find!

As you read, look for people who appear every month. For example,

someone always seems to be chasing a dog. And one worker is always
eating. Think about what stories these people might tell about the
construction site.

5

Can you Before workers can build the new school, they must tear down an
find . . .
old building on the site. This work is called demolition.
an old sink? A crane swings a heavy metal ball at the walls. Bricks
from the walls crash to the ground. A special claw
grabs window frames and water pipes. Bulldozers
clear away the broken-up bits, or rubble.

6

January

Demolition
Digging the foundation

Pumping concrete
Placing the floors
Setting the roof timbers
Adding roof tiles
Building a street

Painting the walls7

Can you A few weeks later, bulldozers clear away the last of the rubble. Workers
find . . .
cut up old metal beams. To do this work, they use special tools. Bulldozers
a hose? also dig narrow paths called trenches. This is where the new building’s
foundation will be. The foundation is the building’s base. Earthmovers
scoop the dirt into dump trucks to be taken away. The digging has
uncovered a few surprises. One builder finds an old pillar.
Other workers spot a fossil (the remains
of an ancient animal).

a heavy saw?

8

February

Demolition
Digging the foundation

Pumping concrete
Placing the floors
Setting the roof timbers
Adding roof tiles
Building a street

Painting the walls 9

Can you The time has come to put in the foundation. A
find . . .
concrete mixer pours a building material called
a worker concrete into a machine. The machine pumps
spreading concrete into the foundation. When the concrete
concrete? dries, it becomes very hard. At the same time,
a crane rises high above the action. It will carry
supplies to the upper floors. Trucks deliver bricks
and beams for the new school.

a builder’s
plans?

10

March

Demolition
Digging the foundation

Pumping concrete
Placing the floors
Setting the roof timbers
Adding roof tiles
Building a street

Painting the walls 11

Can you The building is taking shape. Trucks bring slabs to make the floors. A crane
find . . .
lowers the floor slabs in place. Workers are also building the frame of the
an electric drill? school. They use a special type of concrete. It makes the building
extra strong. Workers set up wooden platforms so they
can finish the building’s outside. As the building
gets taller, the platforms get
taller too.

a pickax?

a dog?
a bucket?

12

May

Demolition
Digging the foundation

Pumping concrete
Placing the floors
Setting the roof timbers
Adding roof tiles
Building a street

Painting the walls 13

Can you The frame of the building is finished. The builders start laying
find . . .
bricks. They are supposed to leave spaces for the windows.
a round saw? But one window has been bricked in! Trucks bring in
long pieces of wood called timbers. The timbers
are for the roof. The crane lifts the pieces to
the top of the building. Workers hammer
them into place.

a concrete
mixer?

a toolbox?

a wheelbarrow?

14

August

Demolition
Digging the foundation

Pumping concrete
Placing the floors
Setting the roof timbers
Adding roof tiles
Building a street

Painting the walls 15

Can you The roof is nearly done. The roofers unroll thick paper called felt.
find . . .
They nail it to the timbers. Then they put roof tiles on top of the
bags of paper. Some builders fit window frames into the spaces left in the
cement? walls. A small crane brings sheets of glass to the builders
standing on the platforms. At the same time, a bulldozer and
an earthmover have come back. They are starting to build
the street that will lead to the school.

a worker fitting a
window frame?

a shovel?

a movable
toilet?

16

October

Demolition
Digging the foundation

Pumping concrete
Placing the floors
Setting the roof timbers
Adding roof tiles
Building a street

Painting the walls 17

Can you The outside of the building and the street are nearly finished. Trucks
find . . .
carrying hot tar arrive. They tip the tar onto a machine that spreads it
a plumber? smoothly on the road. A roller presses the tar flat. But what’s going on
a worker inside the building? To help you see, the picture has part of the roof and
planting a tree? front wall taken away. A lot of new workers are on the site. Plasterers
coat the brick walls with plaster. Electricians wire the school.
Plumbers put in water pipes. Only a few small accidents happen!
Soon the school has smooth walls, electric wiring, and running water.

a plasterer?
sleeping workers?

18

November

Demolition
Digging the foundation

Pumping concrete
Placing the floors
Setting the roof timbers
Adding roof tiles
Building a street

Painting the walls 19

Can you The picture again shows what’s going on inside and outside. The
find . . .
school is nearly ready to open. Workers are busy painting the
a blackboard? walls. Movers bring in new desks. Builders put the doors on closets.
a worker Outside, gardeners have planted trees and shrubs. A worker
painting a paints a white line down the middle of the new street. Other workers
white line? add a crosswalk. And people are curious! A TV crew rushes to
be the first to talk to the principal. They want to know what he
thinks of his brand-new school. A soccer team and some
students stop by. The new school will open next year.

a man with
a camera?
a school clock?
a paintbrush?

20

December

Demolition
Digging the foundation

Pumping concrete
Placing the floors
Setting the roof timbers
Adding roof tiles
Building a street

Painting the walls 21

Glossary

bulldozer: a powerful tractor that can move dirt and rocks
concrete: a building material made from sand, rocks, cement,
and water
demolition: knocking down something
earthmover: a machine that can dig up and move dirt
fossil: the hardened remains of an ancient animal or plant
foundation: the solid base on which a building is built
plaster: a material made of sand, water, and lime that is
smoothed on walls
rubble: broken bricks and stones

22

Learn More about Construction

Books

Brill, Marlene Targ. Concrete Mixers. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications
Company, 2007.

Bullard, Lisa. Cranes. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications Company, 2007.
Hayward, Linda. A Day in a Life of a Builder. New York: DK Children, 2001.
Hill, Lee Sullivan. Earthmovers. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications Company, 2003.
Jango-Cohen, Judith. Dump Trucks. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications Company, 2003.
Kilby, Don. At a Construction Site. Tonawanda, NY: Kids Can Press, 2006.
Liebman, Dan. I Want to Be a Builder. Richmond Hill, ON: Firefly Books, 2003.
Nelson, Robin. From Tree to House. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications Company, 2004.
Taus-Bolstad, Stacy. From Clay to Bricks. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications Company, 2003.
Zemlicka, Shannon. From Rock to Road. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications Company, 2004.

Websites

Bob the Builder
http://www.bobthebuilder.com
The official website of Bob the Builder offers games, puzzles, and more for kid builders.

Kikki’s Workshop
http://www.kenkenkikki.jp/e_index2.html
This website is all about the machines used in building. It has pictures, games, pages to
color, and more.

23

A Closer Look

This book has a lot to find. Did you see people who showed up again
and again? Think about what these people did and saw
during the year. If these people kept journals, what would they
write? A journal is a book with blank pages where people
write down their thoughts. Have you ever kept a journal?
What did you write about?

Try making a journal for one of the characters in this book.
You will need a pencil and a piece of paper. Choose your
character. Give your character a name. Write the name of
the month at the top of the page. Underneath, write about the character’s life
during that month. Pretend you are the character. What kind of work are you doing?
Is your work hard or easy? Why? What have you noticed about the new school? Have
you seen anything surprising at work? What? What do you hope to do next month?

Don’t worry if you don’t know how to spell every word. You can ask a parent or
teacher for help if you need to. And be creative!

Index laying bricks, 14
laying a foundation, 8–9, 10
accidents, 5, 18 painting, 20
building a street, 16, 18, 20 roofing, 14, 16
bulldozers, 6, 8, 16 rubble, 6, 8
concrete, 10, 12 trucks, 8, 10, 12, 14, 18
cranes, 6, 10, 12 windows, 14, 16
demolition, 6–7
earthmovers, 8, 16

24

Send in the cranes! Bulldozers! Earthmovers!

Would you like to watch how a building goes up? During the next
twelve months, construction workers are building a school. Check
out the eight action-packed scenes for a bird’s-eye view of the
whole process. See how the workers make the foundation, add the
walls, and put on the roof. Keep your eye on the calendar too. By
spending a whole year at the building site, you can watch events
unfold until the school is ready for students and teachers.

Read all the books in the Time Goes By series!

A Day at a Zoo A Year at a Farm
A Day at an Airport A Year in a Castle
A Day in a City A Year in the World of Dinosaurs
A Year at a Construction Site A Year on a Pirate Ship