Little Red Tractor

YMA recommendation

Approved as non-violent media, with caution. Accidental harm; Risk of imitative behaviour

Most suitable age range:

2-4

Availability

At time of review, screening on DVD.

Many items on the list of non-violent media may be available for either purchase or hire. Click here for some ideas of where to look for them.

About the program

Year of production	2004
Classification advice
Rating	G
Consumer advice lines	None
Duration	10 minutes

Other information
Country of origin	UK
Production Company	Little Entertainment Company

Synopsis

Hard working farmer Stan gets lots of help from his trusty Little Red Tractor who responds to instructions with toots and beeps and is always there to help him rescue pigs, solve mysteries (usually involving their lazy neighbour Mr. Jones) and plant potatoes.

Points to consider

Words of caution

The episodes contain accidental harm in the form of one man repeatedly crashing his four-wheeler and flipping himself over fences.
In another episode Mr. Jones tries to get out of planting potatoes by stuffing his tennis ball shooter full of potatoes. His plan backfires when the villagers and neighbouring farms come under attack with many people getting hit by flying potatoes.
Mr. Jones is dishonest and tells bold-faced lies whenever he feels that he can profit by them, such as when he tries to find a natural spring and doesn’t want to share the water or the money, or when he makes crop circles with a tractor and claims that it was aliens. In the end he is made to admit that he was dishonest and will sometimes be forced to make amends, such as apologizing to the townspeople (after the potato incident) and planting the rest of his crop by hand.

Positive aspects

Stan is very patient and helpful and is always willing to share and lend a hand; His hard working and friendly nature provide a good role model for children, especially with the contrast of Mr. Jones
The Little Red Tractor demonstrates that you don’t have to be big, or fancy or powerful to save the day, that there can be small heroes too.

Questions to ask

Was Mr. Jones honest when he said that he didn’t know how the circles in the corn had gotten there? Why didn’t he say something right away?
What happened later on? Did his lie get out of hand?
Do you think that he was embarrassed when everybody knew what he had done?
What would have been a better way to handle the situation? What would you have done?