Wreck-It Ralph
- Grades: 6 to 9
- Common Sense Media: read the review
- CS strength: 3 out of 5
- SEL strength: 4 out of 5
- Rotten Tomatoes: 86% critics
What happens
Ralph is the villain of an old arcade game called Fix-It Felix Jr. After thirty years of being the bad guy, he leaves his game to win a hero’s medal in another one. His trip takes him through a shooting game and a candy racing game, where he meets Vanellope von Schweetz, a kid who is treated as a glitch and is not allowed to race. His mistakes put every game in the arcade at risk.
Why we watch it
Ralph is told who he is by the job his game gives him, and the film is about whether you have to be what other people say you are. It is funny and fast, which helps the room, and it has a light computer science connection (game characters follow their code, a glitch is a bug). One question on the worksheet uses that. It is rated PG and has some cartoon action and rude humor.
Standards alignment
Answer key and teacher notes
- B What is Ralph's job in his game, Fix-It Felix Jr.?
- A Why does Ralph leave his game?
- B Which game does Ralph enter first to win a medal?
- B Why is Vanellope von Schweetz not allowed to race in Sugar Rush?
- A What does Ralph say at the end about who he is?
Questions 1 to 3 are plot comprehension. Questions 4 and 5 read social situations.
CASEL focus by question:
- Self-Awareness: labels and identity
- Social Awareness: excluding a different person
- Responsible Decision-Making: owning and repairing a mistake
- Self-Awareness and Social Awareness: reframing a weakness (also a light CS tie: a glitch is a bug)
- Personal Connection: self-reflection
Content note: Rated PG for rude humor and cartoon action. The Hero’s Duty game has some scary alien bugs, and there are a few mild jokes. Fine for grades 6 to 9.