A Bedtime Favorite and Book of the Day
I was playing some sort of puzzle with my young nephew several years ago. The puzzle had all different sorts of trucks. I am not a truck expert so I was excited to recognize something other than a dump truck.
“A steam shovel!” I said, picking up the piece.
“No,” young nephew said, “That’s an excavator!”
And indeed it was. I was impressed that young nephew, who was no more than three, knew such a big word. Turns out that Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site was his current favorite bedtime book and he was up to date with all his construction vehicles. Several years later I bought the book for my daughter and it also became a bedtime favorite.
Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site, written and illustrated by Sherri Dusky Rinker and Tom Lichtenheld, is a classic bedtime book that follows along with construction vehicles as they prepare for bed. What makes the book special is its unique combination of bedtime story and learning about vehicles and what they do.
All the trucks work hard as a team. They enjoy their job and look forward to working again in the morning, but now it is time to settle down and get some well-deserved rest. Children will compare themselves to the hard-working trucks, they have also had a busy day learning and growing but now it’s time to settle down and sleep.
After we follow Crane Truck finishing his work, stretching, and cuddling with his teddy bear, the book gently reads, “Shh…goodnight, Crane Truck, goodnight.” Brilliant words for a bedtime book. I don’t know much about psychology, but something about saying “shhh” out loud automatically quiets down a room (and also a small child settling down for bed).
After Crane Truck we follow Cement Mixer, Dump Truck, Bulldozer, and Excavator as they end their busy work and prepare for bed. Each construction truck segment ends with “Shh…goodnight (insert construction vehicle name), goodnight.”
Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site is an awesome interactive book, which I have found is good for bedtime. You and your child get to share an experience together rather than just mindlessly reading words on a page. When Crane Truck ends his day with “Reaching, stretching, lifting high, He swings the beam into the sky,” my daughter and I reeeaaach and streeeetch our hands high! And as Cement Mixer yawns, we must yawn too!
And of course, together we recite, “Goodnight (vehicle), goodnight”, at each opportunity. Side note: Something I’ve learned from reading children’s books is that just about any book can be an interactive book. You don’t need a lift the flap book or slide and seek type book to be interactive. Books are what you make of them as the reader and listener. Talking, interacting, reading along, acting out passages, you create your own interactive experience.
Ava and my young nephew, and me now too, are both well-learned when it comes to construction vehicles due to this book. It provides a fresh look into a profession that kids find fascinating. We recently had a long road trip and while her Dad was grumpy at all the construction along I-95, Ava loved looking at all the construction workers and their trucks.
Thank you, Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site for providing my daughter with entertainment, a lovely bedtime experience, and most importantly, knowledge of construction vehicles so she is not embarrassed when talking with industry experts and/or young nephews about such things.
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