Dr. Donna's Review

THEMES & OTHER THINGS

Pinkie Pie and her pony friends in Ponyville share another adventure with the Kidtoon family. The story of their efforts to rescue Twinkle Wish, the magical star that grants each one of them a special wish, will appeal to both boys and girls in the three to six year age group and to many of their older siblings. The storyline is simple enough for young children to follow but rich enough to engage both the younger and older age groups.

The characters grapple with several important and age-appropriate themes across the course of the story:

• Compassion – Being compassionate is an important character trait. Pinkie Pie models compassion when she goes out of her way to be kind and include Cherilee when she is forgotten when making holiday ornaments. The ponies put Cherilee’s own happiness before their own needs when they set aside their work and help Cherilee with her ornament.

• Respect – The ponies respect Mayor Flitter Flutter so much so that they will go to any extent to please her and to fulfill her orders of keeping Twinkle Wish happy and rested before the Winter Wishes Festival. They understand that if they do not fulfill the order to keep Twinkle Wish safe that it will displease the mayor and then trouble will ensue…and it does!

• Truthfulness – Telling the truth is an important character trait.  When the mayor checks in on Twinkle Wish, the ponies lie and pretend that she is safe. They know that they should tell the truth but make excuses for lying, when they’ve lost Twinkle Wish.

• Cooperation and Collaboration – Pinkie Pie learns that the best way to rescue Twinkle Wish is to work together.  Pinkie learns that she cannot do it alone and must enlist the help of the other ponies.  The ponies must work together to think of good ways to rescue Twinkle Wish.

• Responsibility and Accountability – Pinkie Pie and each of the ponies ultimately accepts the responsibility for their part in letting Twinkle Wish out of her box and awaking her from her much needed “cutie sleep.”  Pinkie Pie goes to great lengths to rescue Twinkle Wish. 

These five themes deal with character traits and skills. Children benefit when they see desirable skills modeled by popular characters. Children need these skills as they venture beyond the world of family into the worlds of school, friends and community. The five themes offer good opportunities for discussion with children. Suggestions are provided in the section entitled Talking Points.

TALKING POINTS

• Help children recall the basic plot line and main points of the story: Winter has arrived and the ponies are preparing for a Winter Wishes Festival.  The ponies make holiday ornaments.  After Cherilee is momentarily forgotten, it is her special ornament that wins her the honor of placing the wishing star at the top of the Ever Forever Green Tree.  When one of the other ponies, Scootaloo becomes jealous, Twinkle Wish is mistakenly set free and then taken away by a flying dragon. The ponies must band together to save Twinkle Wish, putting aside their own fears, insecurities and needs.  They must save the wishing star and the winter season in Ponyville before the Festival can begin.

• Help children to identify the different elements of winter.  Encourage them to talk about other seasons and how winter is different from spring, summer, and fall. In many locations, the weather and climate determines winter activities.  The ponies are hoping for snow and time to go ice-skating. Ask children for some examples of things they might see in their neighborhood, town or city that comes with the changing seasons.

• Talk with children about holiday traditions. Ask them how they celebrate with their family and friends? Explain what traditions are – favorite activities, meals, gatherings, etc.  The ponies talk about their favorite traditions such as planning parties, picking out new holiday outfits, hanging decorations, singing songs, painting pictures and baking treats. Encourage the children to talk about their favorite traditions.

• Encourage the children to talk about their wishes.  The ponies wish that it would snow. The holiday season is a special, enchanting and magical time of the year.  Ask the children what are some things that they wish for. Take the discussion one step further and ask them why they are wishing for these certain things.  Ask them who they make wishes for – themselves, family or friends.  Encourage them to talk about believing that their wishes can come true – why or why not?

• Talk to the children about honesty and telling the truth. Start with identifying the difference between telling the truth and telling a lie. The ponies are faced with making a decision about telling Mayor Flitter Flutter the truth about setting Twinkle Wish free.  Scootaloo tells a lie and the other ponies join in. Talk about real life situations in which the children had to choose to tell the truth or tell a lie. Ask them what decision they made and how things might have turned out differently if they had made a different decision.

• Encourage the children to talk about the meaning of friendship. The ponies talk to Whimsey, the flying dragon about friendship.  She is lonely and feels friendless and that is why she has captured Twinkle Wish. Talk about what characteristics make a good friend and a meaningful friendship. Discuss activities that friends like to do together.  A few that the ponies mention are sharing feelings, telling riddles, and doing arts and crafts.  Ask about activities that the children like to do with their friends. Discuss the meaning of the saying, “a friend is someone you can count on.”

ACTIVITY IDEAS

• Have children draw pictures of their favorite character from the movie. Write the name of the character on the picture. Post it for everyone to see.

• Make ornaments with the children to use to decorate their home for the holidays. Gather construction paper, scissors, glue, glitter and every day household objects (such as buttons, ribbon, yarn, pictures, old greeting cards, tape and glue) to make new and imaginative decorations.

• Help the children write their own winter story.  Help them to pick a main character perhaps using Twinkle Wish or one of the ponies (such as Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash or Cheerilee). What kind of adventure would they go on? What fun winter activities would happen in the story - perhaps sledding, ice-skating or skiing? Would the characters learn something about compassion, truthfulness or responsibility?

• Music is often a fun part of holiday celebrations. Gather fun and favorite music that help to add to the festive mood and celebrations of the winter season.  Introduce children to classics and favorites such as “Frosty the Snowman,” “Winter Wonderland” or “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” Perhaps the children will chose one of the songs from “My Little Pony: Twinkle Wish Adventure!”

BOOK SUGGESTIONS

These books are recommended to encourage you to read to and with children about the themes from the movie.

Wish: Wishing Traditions Around the World by Roseanne Thong and Elisa Kleven (about wish fulfillment)

Mrs. Muddle's Holidays by Laura F. Nielsen and Thomas F. Yezerski (about celebrating holidays)

Plaid: A Tale of Compassion by Leslie Young; Patricia Field (about compassion)

Horton Hears a Who by Dr. Seuss (about integrity, respect and responsibility)

Ruthie and the (Not So) Teeny Tiny Lie by Laura Rankin (about telling the truth)

The Empty Pot by Demi (about truth and responsibility)