Dr. Donna's Review

About the Film

Grandpa Piggley Winks is having a birthday and his three grandchildren, Seamus, Sean and Meg, arrive with their mom to give him his birthday present. They find Grandpa a bit distracted because he’s been trying to telephone his best friend Ferney with whom he speaks each and every birthday, and find that Ferney is not at home. The three grandchildren decide to tell him a story to cheer him up. Sean goes first. In his story, Grandpa (Piggley), Ferney and Dannon are youngsters again. While racing around in their Raloo Rocket, they find a magic lamp. When they rub the magic lamp, a genie appears and tells them they have three wishes. Piggley is the first to make a wish. He wishes the rocket would be the “fastest in the world.” Their little home-made rocket transforms into a real rocket and they take off for the moon. They have fun adventures on the moon then return home safely. Meg decides to tell the story about the second wish through rhyming. Her story is about Mr. Hornsby’s classroom on the day that the second wish was used to control all of the words from his mouth. Suddenly, instead of assigning piles of homework, Mr. Hornsby was telling everyone to go out and play. Seamus tells the story about the third wish. In his story, Ferney wishes to be big – “bigger than dad, no, bigger than a house.” He gets his wish and is suddenly towering above the houses and trees. At first, it seems like fun but then he realizes that his size makes others afraid of him. He decides he would rather just be his old size.

Grandpa acknowledges that he liked the three stories but he is still acting somewhat sad. When the doorbell rings, everyone is surprised and happy to see Ferney who has come all the way from Ireland to celebrate Grandpa’s birthday and he has brought a special present - the original Raloo Rocket that he and Grandpa played with as boys. Seeing the old rocket triggers memories from Ferney and Grandpa. They tell the grandchildren about how they came to build the Raloo Rocket, how they tried to make it fly, and how the rocket got its wheels. Everyone enjoys listening to Ferney’s “singing stories.” When the old Raloo Rocket falls apart, they all work to put it back together and the three grandchildren take it out for a ride just as Grandpa and Ferney had done when they were kids.

About the Kids
This film’s primary appeal is to younger children, 3 to 6. Both boys and girls will enjoy this feature. The characters are unique from one another and developed with an intrinsic appeal to younger children. The themes are age appropriate and there are many lessons, both cognitive and social-emotional, embedded in the story content.

Film content and features
“Jakers: Wish Upon A Story” is a charming, well-produced feature about a delightful group of animal characters. Most of the characters have accents but the accents add charm and are never so pronounced that their lines are inaccessible. It contains wonderful humor and themes about family, resourcefulness, imagination, and friendship. The lessons conveyed through the film are both cognitive and social emotional in content.

Things to talk about
The film provides several opportunities for conversations with young children. Here are some suggestions:

• Talk with children about the relationship between Grandpa and Ferney. Help them to understand that Grandpa and Ferney have been friends since they were children.
• Talk with children about your own childhood friends. Show them pictures of yourself with friends when you were their age. Children love to hear stories about the childhood years of the grown-ups they love. These conversations help children gain perspective on the continuity of life.
• Ask children to think of three things they would wish for if suddenly a genie offered them that possibility. Listen to their ideas without judging or making alternative suggestions. Encourage them to “wish big.” What children wish for can be a window into their deepest desires. Wishing can also provide motivation for children to take action to fulfill their desires.
• Seamus told the story about Ferney’s wish to be big then finding out that his size scared the others. Ferney went to his dad and asked “Do you still love me, Papa?” Ask children to think about why Ferney asked his dad this question. Why did Ferney even wonder whether his dad would still love him?
• The building and rebuilding of the Raloo Rocket is an example of resourcefulness and use of imagination. Ask children to recall and describe the things used to build the rocket. Help them to see that old things were used in new ways.
• Provide paper and crayons and have children draw a picture of the Raloo Rocket.
• Suggest that children build their own Raloo Rocket. Help them find the parts and put it together.