Dragon Badge Dragon Tales: A Collection of Stories and Songs

Each dragon in Dragon Land wears a unique badge. When a dragon overcomes a personal challenge, his or her dragon badge glows. The "Make-Your-Own Dragon Badge" activity can be used to help identify and set challenges that your child wants or needs to face in his own life.

dragon badge dragon tales

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Let your child choose a badge shape he likes and decorate it with objects that express his personality. Then ask your child, "What makes your dragon badge glow?" Together, choose one of the listed challenges or help your child write his own. When the badge is complete, print it out.

A Dragon Badge is a charm necklace that hangs around the neck of every dragon in Dragon Land. They glow when a dragon does something really big like overcoming an emotional obstacle or learning an important lesson.

Dragon Tales is an animated educational fantasy children's television series created by Jim Coane and Ron Rodecker and developed by Coane, Wesley Eure, Jeffrey Scott, Cliff Ruby and Elana Lesser and produced by Sony Pictures Television, Sesame Workshop, Columbia TriStar Television, and Adelaide Productions. The story focuses on the adventures of two ordinary kids, Emmy and Max, and their dragon friends Ord, Cassie, Zak, Wheezie, and Quetzal. The series began broadcasting on PBS on their newly-renamed PBS Kids block on September 6, 1999, with its final episode on November 25, 2005 (the show was dropped from the PBS Kids lineup on August 31, 2010). Yearim Productions was responsible for the animation for all seasons (Sunwoo Entertainment and Wang Film Productions only did animation for season 1), with the exception of Koko Enterprises, which recorded the show along with BLT Productions. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, The U.S. Department of Education, cereal company Kellogg's and their associated products Rice Krispies, Froot Loops and Frosted Flakes, and greeting card manufacturer, American Greetings[5] were responsible for the funding.

Dragon Tales is based on characters created in 1978[6] by Laguna Beach, California artist and retired educator Ron Rodecker. Rodecker was recovering from a coronary artery bypass graft when he began sketching dragons as a means of symbolizing forces in life that were too big to control.[6][7][8] In 1995, Jim Coane, then a producer at Columbia TriStar Television, found the artwork and developed it into a television series with several writers. The project was considered something of a risky venture, because it was not based on a well-known franchise like many children's television programs, such as Arthur or Paddington Bear. The series was immediately shipped to PBS member stations at the suggestion of PBS, but all originally passed at the time. In October 1995, Jim Coane met Marjorie Kalins, senior VP of programming and production at Children's Television Workshop, and showed her the idea for the series. Kalins, who loved the idea, brought the series to Children's Television Workshop, who agreed to a partnership with the Columbia TriStar Television Group. Kalins helped him and Columbia TriStar Television obtain an $8.5 million grant from the Department of Education and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The grant proposal was written by Wesley Eure.[9] Coane stated that there was never any consideration of trying to shop the program to a commercial broadcast network and that PBS was, in his mind, the only destination for the program.[10] As Columbia TriStar was the TV division of two major Hollywood film studios, which in turn are owned by the Sony Pictures Entertainment division of Japanese multinational conglomerate Sony, Dragon Tales became one of the few PBS Kids and Sprout programs to be co-produced by a major Hollywood studio's TV subsidiary; The other PBS shows were Bill Nye the Science Guy (made by Walt Disney Television), and Curious George (produced by Universal Television). In 2002, CTTV was renamed to Sony Pictures Television, a company that would co-produce the third season of the program.

After a tour of the lot of Sony Studios, Wesley Eure created the first treatment of the show, including the initial conception of the two-headed dragon Zak and Wheezie, back then known as "Snarf and Bugger." The series received a massive multi-million dollar grant from the federal government, beating out The Muppets and Sesame Street for the request. As part of the conditions for the grant, Eure was required to create a companion series for the program, which he titled Show and Tell Me, based on his own lecture series known as "Anyone Can Write a Book." Though the companion series was never actually created, Eure remains hopeful that it will one day be produced. Eure's name was not included in the initial credits for the series, forcing him to hire an attorney to ensure that he received credit.[11]

The series focuses on the adventures of Emmy and Max, two human siblings. Upon moving into their new house, they find an enchanted dragon scale which, upon reciting a special rhyme engraved into its box, can magically transport them to Dragon Land, a whimsical fantasy world inhabited by colorful dragons. Befriended by four friendly dragons with distinctive personalities - the fearful, but strong Ord; the shy, yet sweet-natured Cassie; and polar opposite twins, neat-freak Zak and rambunctious Wheezie - the two children frequently travel to Dragon Land and help their friends in fulfilling particular quests, assisting them in their daily problems, and learning important morals through their experiences in Dragon Land.

The dragons also each have their own dragon badges that glow when they accomplish something they usually have trouble with. For example, Ord's glows when he is brave. Cassie's glows when she overcomes her anxiety. Zak and Wheezie's glow when they overcome their differences and work together.

In an effort to educate preschoolers mildly in Hispanic culture, a new character named Enrique debuted during the show's final season, providing the series with a third protagonist.[14] Surrounded by a variety of unique characters and faced with numerous differing situations, Emmy and Max commonly embark on adventures with their dragon friends, conquering fears or achieving goals in spite of any obstacles along the way.

Dragon Land is the fantasy world where the majority of the show takes place. It is home to numerous colorful, dragons and many other fantastical creatures. Max and Emmy travel to Dragon Land by holding an enchanted dragon scale while reciting the rhyme: "I wish, I wish, with all my heart, to fly with dragons in a land apart." The scale then teleports them to Dragon Land. It appears that it does not matter who does or does not say the rhyme, as long as at least one person says it; whoever is holding the dragon scale while they say the rhyme will be teleported with them. Returning home from Dragon Land is done in the same fashion, although no dragon scale is needed. The rhyme is: "I wish, I wish, to use this rhyme, to go back home until next time." The person reciting the rhyme, as well as all those holding their hands, will be transported back to their original homes.

Dragon Tales premiered on PBS Kids on September 6, 1999 with the episode "To Fly with Dragons/The Forest of Darkness." The installment introduced the characters of Max and Emmy to Dragon Land after discovering a magical dragon scale in their new home and to their new dragon friends. In the first half, they discovered Ord's missing tooth, while the adventures continued in the second story with Ord facing his fear of the dark. A total of forty episodes were aired in the first season, with the finale airing on April 28, 2000. The show also aired on the original PBS Kids Channel until that network's closure in 2005. Dragon Tales was the only CTW show airing on the PBS Kids Channel due to Noggin having the cable rights to air shows from the CTW's programming library (including its flagship series Sesame Street). The show's second season premiered on June 4, 2001 and had 25 episodes. 20 of these episodes were broadcast from June 4, 2001 to September 14, 2001. The final installment of this set, "Just the Two of Us/Cowboy Max," was broadcast only in non-U.S. markets such as Guam and Canada and did not premiere to U.S. audiences until the program's third season, though "Cowboy Max" was released on DVD prior to this. The special "Let's Start a Band!," featuring the dragon characters blended with live humans in a musical show based on the program's "Dragon Tunes" segments, was released on March 2, 2003. Following this, no new episodes were aired until February 21, 2005, leading many long-time viewers to believe the program had been quietly canceled. The new season introduced the new character Enrique, an immigrant from Colombia, as well as an updated focus on folk songs and teaching of Spanish. The premiere installment, in two parts, showed Enrique being introduced to the sights and sounds of Dragon Lands, learning to fly on Zak & Wheezie, and having his first adventure. The second half appeared as "The Mystery of the Missing Knuckerholes" in some listings, but on the program was simply titled as Part 2 of the episode. Though 29 episodes were broadcast, including "Just the Two of Us/Cowboy Max," only one story from each was original, while the others were a repeat of a story from the second season. The series officially concluded with the "Big, Big Friends Day" special on November 25, 2005.Dragon Tales would continue to air in reruns on the PBS Kids block (and sister channel Sprout) until August 31, 2010.

The series has received generally positive reviews (although the third season's reception was more mixed).[attribution needed] Common Sense Media rated the show a four out of five stars, stating, Dragon Tales intends to positively impact a child's growth and development by encouraging a love of learning and helping children problem-solve and work through the challenges of growing up. The kids and dragons embark on different adventures and attend the School in the Sky, all while learning how to face their fears and handle new situations. The fun, nurturing, and sometimes challenging atmosphere of Dragon Land is a lot like preschool."[39] 2ff7e9595c