At the beginning of the story, we see a little boy and his best friend – a toy robot. One year later and the boy has grown tired of his little friend. Although the robot tries to please the boy, it seems like he cannot do anything right and the boy begins to mistreat him.

One night, the boy has a nightmare and in the dream he is saved by his little robot friend. It is then that he realises that perhaps he isn’t so bad after all.

Learning opportunities

• The opening quote is attributed to the creator of Toy Story. Are the children able to draw any similarities?
• Discuss the moral/meaning of the story.
• Write dialogue for the characters.
• Map the boy/robot’s thoughts and emotions through the different stages of the film.
• Retell the story in 1st or 3rd person – decide how to signify the dream sequence.
• Write a story about the robot going on his own adventure.