Child's Play

How To Use: BYE, CAR!

Discussion prompts

Here are some ideas for things to talk about while sharing the book - you could explore a few different points each time you read it.

Who do you think is telling the story? Is it one of the children or both of them? In most of the illustrations, one of the characters is waving - maybe they’re taking it in turns?

Older children might notice wordplay between ‘bye, car’ and ‘by car’. The text is multi-layered; the characters are literally waving goodbye to the cars they see but we’re also saying goodbye to them in favour of more environmentally friendly transportation.

The characters wear face masks when they go outside - can you think of some reasons why?

One of the children in the book wears ear defenders - some people are more sensitive to sounds than others and they may experience sensory overload. The ear defenders make the character more comfortable. Can you point out some of the noisy things in the pictures?

There’s an electric vehicle charging point on the ‘Bye, quiet car’ page - you could use this as a way to talk about electric cars and their benefits.

The characters cross over a couple of roads in the story - how can you tell that you’ve reached a safe place to cross? Are there markings? Should you look for a button to press?

The next day, the structure changes to ‘Hello, ____’ - are ‘hello’s happier than ‘goodbye’s? Does this change in tone make the story more hopeful?

Can you see more plants in the illustrations now? You could use this observation to talk about the connections between nature and cleaner air.

On the “Hi, bicycles passing us'' spread there are lots of different types of bikes - how are they different and how does each one suit the cyclist’s needs? Which one would you pick?

Look at the endpapers together - how are the ones at the end of the book different to the ones before the story starts? What words come to mind when you look at them, and which of the two designs makes you feel happier?

Activities

Transport Tour!

While out walking, you could look for things from the book:
• Count the bus stops you see. If you don’t see any for a while, you could talk about bus routes and how they work.
• Count all of the different transport methods around you.
• Look for markings and signs that indicate cycle paths.

Empathy

For a simple exercise in imagination and empathy, choose one of the characters in the book at random. What do you think their name is? Where are they going and why? Do you think they’re having a good day?

Let’s Write!

Can you replicate Naomi Danis’s writing style and make some of your own ‘Bye ____ car’ sentences?

If You Liked ‘BYE, CAR!’ You May Also Enjoy:

KING LEONARD’S TEDDY by Phoebe Swan - Whenever something breaks, King Leonard just buys a new one. But this time the broken thing is his irreplaceable teddy! KING LEONARD’S TEDDY shares BYE, CAR’s valuable message of sustainable living.

ERROL’S GARDEN by Gillian Hibbs - Errol loves growing plants but he doesn’t have a garden. When he discovers the communal area on the roof of his building is empty, he works with his neighbours to develop the space into a garden. If you enjoyed BYE, CAR’s themes of everyone pitching in to help the environment, you’ll love ERROL’S GARDEN!