Companion Reads for the New Year: I Say Thank You and The New Bicycle

Dear Teachers and Parents,

As we welcome the New Year,  I invite you and your young reader to reflect on gratitude and wise choices as foundations for new beginnings. My books, I Say Thank You gently introduces children to the practice of noticing kindness, care, and everyday blessings, helping them develop a habit of appreciation that grounds emotional growth. The New Bicycle, on the one hand, complements this by exploring patience, saving, and responsible decision-making through a child’s realistic and effort. Read together, these books support meaningful conversations at home and in the classroom about values we carry into a new year: thankfulness, self-control, and thoughtful hope.

Companion Reads for the New Year

I Say Thank You introduces young readers to gratitude through everyday moments, showing how noticing small kindnesses builds awareness and care. The book invites children to name what they appreciate in their lives, from people to experiences. It frames gratitude not as obligation, but as a practice that grows gently with habit.

The New Bicycle

The New Bicycle explores the idea of waiting, choosing, and valuing what one works toward. Through a child’s desire for a bicycle, the story introduces basic financial literacy concepts such as saving, prioritizing, and understanding needs versus wants. It emphasizes patience and responsibility without moralizing.

Why They Work as Companion Pieces

Together, these books speak to the New Year as a season of intention:

• Gratitude (what I already have)

• Agency (what I am working toward)

One looks inward with appreciation; the other looks forward with purpose.

Two Short Interactive Activities

My Thank You & My Goal Page (10–15 minutes)

How:

• After reading, ask children to fold a page into two columns.

  • Left: “I say thank you for…”

  • Right: “This year, I am working toward…”

• Younger children may draw; older children can write words or short sentences.

Why it works:
This links gratitude (I Say Thank You) with intentional planning (The New Bicycle), helping children see that appreciation and effort can coexist.

Choice Talk: Today or Later? (5–10 minutes)

How:

• Present a simple scenario: “You want something today, but you can also wait.”

• Ask:

  • What do I already have that I can be thankful for?

  • What happens if I wait? What might I gain?

Why it works:
This reinforces financial literacy ideas from The New Bicycle while grounding decisions in awareness and contentment from I Say Thank You.