The Wizard of Oz

Based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

Unit Study by Karen K. Newell

We have activities for each of the 24 chapters of the book Wizard of Oz. Read the chapter and then do the activities. We think you will have fun both reading the book and doing the projects.

CHAPTER 1

ADJECTIVE BOX

In the box below write some adjectives to describe the scenery in Kansas. How does the author portray the land? You may use the words in the book or your own words to describe the setting. Bonus: Try to make the words look like the adjective. For example this is how you would write the word small.

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COMPARISON

Compare the description of the Kansas prairie in the book with that in the verses from the Kansas state song: Home on the Range.

Home on the Range

Oh, give me a home Where the buffalo roam,

Where the deer and the antelope play; Where seldom is heard A discouraging word And the skies are not cloudy all day

Where the air is so pure,

The zephyrs so free, The breezes so balmy and light,

That I would not exchange My home on the range For all of the cities so bright.

How do the two descriptions of the Kansas prairie compare? Who liked the prairie better, Mr. Baum or the author of the song?

CHAPTER 2

In this chapter you met the Witch of the North. She explained how the Land of Oz was laid out.

Map Making

Following along on a map can help you understand details of a story. On the map you list the people who live in the Land of the East, the Land of the South, and the Land of the West. (You will get to meet them later on.)

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1. Add the names of these people to your map in the location they live where it says “Land of”  Munchkins  Winkies  Quadlings 2. Put a smiley face on the North and South where they are ruled by a good witch. Put a frowning face on the East and West where they are ruled by a bad witch. 3. Add N, S, E, W to the compass rose at the bottom right of the map. 4. Color the road that leads from the East to the Emerald City. What color is the road? 5. What color do the Munchkins like? Circle their town way in the east and color it that color.

The Witch’s Shoes

What color were the witch’s shoes? Some details are changed when movies are made. If you have seen one of the movies, watch for other changes. Color this shoe.

My Idea Box

The witch did not tell us the name of the people who live in the North. You get to name these people yourself. What would you call them?

You can add their name to your map.

CHAPTER 3

What Would I Do?

Before going on her journey, Dorothy went into her house and gathered some things to take. Think a minute. What would you take if you were going into your home for the last time?

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Dress Your Own Scarecrow

The Munchkins dressed their scarecrow in their clothes (of course.) What would a scarecrow look like if you put your clothes on it?

???

Why is the scarecrow afraid of a lighted match?

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CHAPTER 4

Quote

When Scarecrow told Dorothy his story, he said this:

“Brains are the only things worth having in this world, whether one is a crow or a man.”

Do you agree or disagree with his statement?

Map

Dorothy and Scarecrow enter a wood on their journey on the yellow brick road. Draw some trees to represent woods on your map

Scarecrow’s List

For not being very smart, Scarecrow is pretty helpful. You might even wonder if he gives himself credit for his talents. Make a list of some of the things he does that are helpful.

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CHAPTER 5

My Idea Box

The Tin Woodman was made out of tin. What would you make a man out of? If Scarecrow wanted brains, and the Tin Woodman wanted a heart, what would your man want?

Vote

What do you think is more important: brains or heart?

Brains

Heart

Ask ten people and see which gets the most votes.

CHAPTER 6

Quotes

“Have you brains?” asked the Scarecrow.

“I suppose so. I’ve never looked to see,” replied the lion.

What is humorous about this quote?

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“You will be very welcome,” answered Dorothy, “for you will help to keep away the other wild beasts. It seems to me they must be more cowardly then you are if they allow you to scare them so easily.”

“They really are,” said the lion, “but that doesn’t make me feel any braver, and as long as I know myself to be a coward I shall be unhappy.”

From this quote do you think bullies are brave? YES NO

Here’s My List

Dorothy and her companions are getting quite a list of things they are going to ask the wizard for. Make a list of their requests.

Dorothy

Scarecrow

Tin Woodman

Lion

Vocabulary

Mar – to spoil or ruin used in first sentence in the paragraph which is 4th from the end of chapter 6

Write your own sentence with the word “mar” in it:

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The Tin Man and the Beetle

Circle the correct answers.

What did Tin Man do when he stepped on the beetle?

a. He laughed. b. He cried. c. He blamed the others.

What does that tell you about the Tin Man?

a. He hated bugs. b. He worried a lot. c. He cared about living things.

The Scarecrow oiled Tin Man because:

a. He was the only one who knew how to help Tin Man. b. He wanted to punish Tin Man for stepping on the beetle. c. He was wasting the oil.

CHAPTER 7

Map

The company has to pass two creeks and a long river to continue on their journey on the yellow brick road.

The river is drawn for you on your map. Color it blue.

You may want to add two thin creeks before the river.

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Team Work

It’s a good thing Dorothy has these traveling companions because each one helps the group in some way. Mark in the blank of the task:

SC for Scarecrow

TM for the Tin Woodman

L for the Lion

Gathered nuts

Offered to hunt for meat

Jumped across the ditch

Came up with the idea to make a bridge

Faced the Kalidahs and kept them from the others

Cut down trees for the bridge

Dumps the end of the tree in the ditch so the Kalidahs can’t cross

Came up with the idea of building a raft

Gathered fruit for Dorothy and Toto

My Idea Box

If you were one of the travelers, how could you help your companions? Think of a dilemma (or problem) and a way you would solve it.

Chapter 8

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CHAPTER 8

Map

Draw some poppies on your map between the woods and the city. Or you could color it with yellow, white, blue and purple flowers. (Those were the colors mentioned in the book.)

The Mighty Sleeping Lion

Do you have any ideas on how you might rescue a sleeping lion?

Chapter 9

Alike and Different

In this chapter field mice rescue the lion. Have you ever heard other stories of mice saving a lion? Think of how the stories are the same and how they are different.

Vocabulary

Indignant - annoyed or angry

Timid - quiet shy

Harnessed - place ropes or straps over shoulders in order to pull something

Can you write a super sentence with all three words? (Okay, if you want you can stop with only two words.)

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Chapter 10

Map

Give the Emerald City a dark green wall. You can outline the castle in dark green as well.

Seeing Green

Why do you think everything is green? Do you have any clues? (Hint: Do you have any red or green cellophane?)

Chapter 11

The travelers saw the wizard in different forms. Draw what they saw.

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Do what?

What did the wizard want them to do?

If you were with Dorothy and her friends, what would you say?

Let’s go for it!

No way!

Chapter 12

Map

They encounter rough, hilly country as the party heads west. Draw some hills on your map west of the Emerald City.

Draw the witch’s castle. What is the favorite color of this land? Color the area that color.

Matching

Draw a line from the enemies on the left, to their way of attacking Dorothy and her friends in the middle, then to the character who defeated them on the right. If you want, you can use four different colors to make the lines easier to follow.

Wolves Sting Lion

Crows Bite Scarecrow

Bees Stab Tin Man

Winkies with Swords Peck at Eyes Tin Man

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Chants

Here is the wicked witch’s chant:

Eppe peppe kakke

Hillo hollo hello

Zizzy Zuzzy Zik

Can you write your own chant?

Multiple Choice

Circle the best answer.

Why did the witch not want to call the monkeys with the Golden Cap?

a. She could only call them three times and she had already called them twice. b. She was afraid the lion would hurt the monkeys. c. She did not want Dorothy to see the Golden Cap.

What two things did Dorothy have that protected her from the witch?

a. The Golden Cap and the silver shoes b. The silver shoes and the kiss c. The Golden Cap and the kiss d. Toto and the Golden Cap

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Chapter 13

Color My World

Colors are an important part of the book. Remember what color the Munchkins in the east liked?

And what color do the Winkies in the west like?

What do you get when you mix those two colors?

What color is the Emerald City?

Do you think that was an accident or on purpose?

Crossword Puzzle

Fill in the crossword puzzle with the gifts that the Winkies gave to the travelers.

Across: To Dorothy (two words)

Down 1: To the Tin Woodman (3 words)

Down 2: To the lion and Toto

Down 3: To Scarecrow

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CHAPTER 14

East to West

Dorothy and her companions tried to use the sun to help guide them back to the Emerald City. The sun could help them in the morning and afternoon, but not directly at noon when the sun was straight overhead

. Let’s review the basic rules to help them.

Circle the correct words.

The sun rises in the (east/west) and sets in the (east/west).

If you are traveling east in the morning you should go (towards/away from) the sun, but if you are going east in the afternoon you need to go (towards/away from) the sun.

Of course, that means if you are traveling west you would be heading directly into the sun during the (morning/afternoon).

The Golden Cap

My Idea Box

If you got the Golden Cap, what would you command the monkeys to do?

(We highly recommend you keep one of the commands in case of an unforeseen emergency.)

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CHAPTER 15

Vocabulary

Vexed – irritated or annoyed

Humbug – a fraud or hoax, someone or something intended to deceive others

Where in the World is Omaha?

This map shows that Nebraska is north of Kansas in the Great Plains of the USA.

Circle the correct answers.

Omaha is a CITY STATE

Kansas is a CITY STATE

Multiple Choice

How did the wizard get to the Land of Oz?

a. Tornado b. Winged Monkeys c. Hot air balloon d. Witches spell

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CHAPTER 16

Bran or Brains

Bran is the outer part of a grain of wheat. It is removed when white flour is made from wheat. Look at bran in your kitchen if you have it. Otherwise look at a picture of bran on the internet.

Would it be better for the scarecrow to have

Straw Bran Doesn’t Matter

Circle Your Opinion

Courage in a Bottle

The wizard poured courage from a bottle. Wouldn’t it be great if it was that easy to get courage?

What if you could put anything in this bottle: courage, humor, wisdom, patience, talent. What would you like to be in the bottle?

Dorothy’s Dilemma

A dilemma is a problem.

The wizard helped the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, and the Lion.

What is Dorothy’s dilemma?

CHAPTER 17

The Green Balloon

It’s fun to see colorful hot air balloons racing across the sky. But our wizard likes only one color: green. He used dark green, medium green, light green, and forest green material to make his balloon. Color his balloon various shades of green. Or maybe you would like to show him what a multi-colored balloon would look like.

Up, Up, Up

Hot air rises. So why do they heat air to fly a hot air balloon?

My Idea Box

We never hear from the wizard again in this story. What do you think happened to him?

CHAPTER 18

Helping Dorothy

Dorothy tries to use the help of all of these EXCEPT:

a. Golden Cap b. Glinda c. Lion’s Courage d. Winged Monkeys

CHAPTER 19

Map

Between the Emerald City and the Land of the South, the party travels through three different areas. Add these to your map. Don’t make your pictures too big.

 Draw a box for a walled town in the middle between the City and Land of the South.  Draw blades of grass for the green field just south of Emerald City.  Add a few trees or dark green for the woods just north of the walled town.

CHAPTER 20

Idioms

An idiom is a figure of speech. There are some figures of speech in the first few paragraphs.

“Rest your brains” Don’t worry

“Answer their purpose” Work for them

Here are some more modern figures of speech

“Give me a break”

“Slept like a baby”

“Cracked me up”

Keep your eyes open for idioms.

Maps

Add some china houses, barns, or animals in China Country.

My Idea Box

Is there a better way to get over the wall into China Town?

Descriptions, Please

Choose which adjective describes the people of China Country when they first meet them. Circle the word in each row that correctly describes them.

Shy or Curious

Friendly or Wary

Fragile or Unbreakable

Unsightly or Pretty

Miniature or Prodigious

CHAPTER 21

Maps

Add the forest south of China Country and north of the Land of the South. Your map is getting very full now.

Sketch and Scary Spider

Read the description of the spider in the fourth paragraph from the end of the chapter. Make a sketch of the spider and include as many details from the story as you can.

Your Majesty, the Lion

What did the Lion become to the animals of the forest?

K B

CHAPTER 22

The Hammerheads are very unusual creatures. They are made of rock. They have no arms. They hit people with their heads. How imaginative the author was in creating them.

My Idea Box

Create your own kind of creature. Some parts of its body should be very different. One part may be missing. What can they do that you and I can’t do?

Map

The Munchkins liked blue. The Winkies liked yellow. What color do the Quadlings like:

Circle their country with that color and shade it in lightly.

CHAPTER 23

Dreams Come True

Dorothy and her friends got more than what they asked for. In addition to the things they sought from the wizard, what else did they gain?

LION

SCARECROW

WOODEN TINMAN

CHAPTER 24

What else did Dorothy get that she had not looked for?

THE STORY ISN’T OVER

Did you notice that Frank Baum did not tell us very much about the Land of the North? We don’t know the witches name, the people she ruled, or their favorite color. Maybe Mr. Baum was waiting for you to help him finish the story. What do you think happened in the Land of the North after Dorothy returned to Kansas?

You don’t think you can write a story like that?

Actually, Mr. Baum did not write the story all at once. He told many stories about the Land of Oz to children who kept asking him to tell them more. He eventually put all his stories together and wrote the book, The Wizard of Oz.

I think you can do the same thing. In fact, if you go back and read your ideas in the “My Idea Boxes” throughout this unit, you will find you already have a head start.

Happy Writing!

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