Goodbye Brings Hello: A Book of Firsts
Author: Dianne White
Illustrator: Daniel Wiseman
Published June 26th, 2018 by HMH Books for Young Readers
Summary: There are many ways of letting go.
With each goodbye, a new hello.
From being pushed on a swing to learning how to pump your legs yourself, from riding a beloved trike to mastering your first bike ride, from leaving the comforts of home behind to venturing forth on that first day of school, milestones are exciting but hard. They mean having to say goodbye to one moment in order to welcome the next.
Honest and uplifting, this cheerfully illustrated ode to change gently empowers readers to brave life’s milestones, both large and small.
About the Author and Illustrator:
When she was five, Dianne White said goodbye to her house and her teacher, Mrs. Dunlap, and hello to a new school, and her newest favorite teacher, Mr. Loop. She has an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts and is the award-winning author of Blue on Blue. She lives in Arizona, where she writes full-time. Her next book, Who Eats Orange?, is due out August 2018. For more information, and to download a free activity kit, visit diannewrites.com. Twitter: @diannewrites
Daniel Wiseman remembers saying goodbye to the training wheels on his bike, and saying a great big hello to skinned knees and elbows. But the freedom of rolling on two wheels was well worth the bumps and bruises. He still rides his (slightly larger) bike almost every day. Daniel loves to draw, and has illustrated several books for children. He lives in St. Louis, Missouri. Visit him at danieldraws.com. Instagram: @d_wiseman
Praise:
“White and Wiseman have created an engaging set of vignettes that will appeal to young listeners in the process of learning new skills.”—Booklist
“This book will give courage to any child feeling a little nervous or scared to try something new.”—Kirkus
“The brightly colored, naive-style illustrations add a cheerful positivity to the book.”—School Library Journal
Review: Wow! What a great lesson within the pages of this book! As kids grow up, one of the hardest things is the saying goodbye to things as they outgrow or as the world changes. For example, Trent just finished preschool and is now in a jump start to pre-K program, so he is switching teachers. What a hard transition! We’ve also had a lot of change at my school that I teach at, and I have had to talk to my middle schoolers about change. It is hard for them, too! And the book doesn’t only deal with big changes, it also shows that seasons change, clothes change, haircuts change… Life is about changes, and we have to learn how to work through them to live our happiest life. Because of the way the book is written, a lot of discussion can happen inferring from the writing and the illustrations to help determine what change is happening to the kid in the illustration.
Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: Activity kit including discussion questions, poetry, graphing, mazes, looking at seasons, and other fun activities here: https://bit.ly/2s3WA40
Discussion Questions: Here are some some of the discussion questions from the activity kit:
- What are some things you’ve had to say goodbye to? Were you sad to leave them behind? Or did you feel happy that you were moving on to something new?
- On the back cover of the book it says, “Trying new things takes courage.” What do you think this means?
- Can you think ahead to what things you’ll do in the future? What will you be saying goodbye to soon? What hellos are you looking forward to?
- Do you think saying goodbye and hello to things only happens when you’re a kid? Do grown ups say goodbye and hello to things?
Flagged Passages:
Read This If You Love: School People by Lee Bennett Hopkins; Time for School by Brian Biggs; Monster Needs to Go to School by Paul Czajak; On My Way to School by Sarah Maizes; One Leaf, Two Leaves, Count with Me by John Micklos; When Green Becomes Tomatoes by Julie Fogliano
Recommended For:
Giveaway!
**Thank you to Blue Slip Media for providing a copy for review and giveaway!**
Change is hard for many students. This sounds like a useful book to share with students to open up discussions about the emotions associated with saying goodbye.
Goodbyes are hard…love this way of looking at them! Thanks for the opportunity to win a copy!