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UGLY DUCKLING AND ME: SCHOOL DAYS

Visually, this is very well crafted with stunning scenery and fun animations. There were some interesting and humorous issues and opportunities related to solving problems that were very promising elements of this DVD. I think it has content that would be suited for older children even the visuals are stunning. The sound, graphic, artistic themes and scenes were intriguing and captivating in many ways. (Sort of a combination barnyard/urban). Lots of issues having to do with self-esteem, initiative, being loved and caring for others were prevalent. Anti-bullying themes were very well positioned in this DVD and the different ways that humans deal with stress and the "fight-or-flight" approaches were included as options to consider. Because the characters were primarily feathered (ducks and chickens made the distinction, here), this was contrasted with an interesting looking grey-feathered owl-like creature that ended up being abandoned and raised by a rat. The Rat was a kind of street person. Sometimes the interactions were above the level of preschoolers. Not everything was straight-forward in terms of themes or concepts being taught, it was hard to focus on the "facts" that were being taught. However, there were many examples focused on working hard to accomplish "personal achievements," and understanding various ways to accomplish a specific task were modeled.

Everyone knows the Hans Christian Anderson story about the ugly little duckling that changed into a swan. But, what happened in between, when a weird looking little duckling named "Ugly" was adopted by a city rat named Ratso. Includes: "Ugly's First Day At School" - Ugly is excited about attending school, but when he gets bullied by three mean chicks on his first day, he decides he won't go anymore!; "Educating Ratso" - Ratso has never had an education and he does just fine, so he urges Ugly to skip school. But when Mayor Esmerelda finds out she is not pleased.; "What Would Ratso Do?" - When Ugly's schoolteacher Daphne explains the meaning of the expression, Like Hen, Like Chick, to the class, he gets very confused. Ugly has not intention of becoming exactly like his dad, so he sets out to do the exact opposite of what Ratso would do.