21. The Journey to the Great Oz
Complete textbook exercise solutions — Maharashtra State Board (Balbharati), Grade Five English.
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- eventful (- ful) — beautiful, wonderful, fearful
- travellers (- ers) — workers, players, teachers
- despairingly (- ly) — quietly, slowly, happily
- carefully (- fully) — beautifully, peacefully, joyfully
- Dorothy: A brave little girl who was whisked away by a cyclone to the magical land of Oz. She is on a journey to meet the Wizard with her friends.
- Toto: Dorothy’s small and loyal pet dog who accompanies her everywhere.
- Scarecrow: A man made of straw who wants to ask the Wizard for a brain. However, he acts very intelligently throughout the journey, providing clever solutions to their problems.
- Tin Woodman: A man made entirely of tin who carries a sharp axe. He wants to ask the Wizard for a heart. He uses his axe to chop down a tree to make a bridge for the group.
- Cowardly Lion: A big lion who believes he is a coward and wants bravery from the Wizard. Despite his fears, he bravely leaps across deep ditches and stands up to terrifying beasts to protect his friends.
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To cross the first wide ditch, the Cowardly Lion decided to jump over it. He carried his friends on his back one by one. The Scarecrow went first, followed by Dorothy holding Toto, and finally the Tin Woodman. With great leaps, the Lion safely transported everyone to the other side.
The second gulf was too broad for the Lion to leap across. The intelligent Scarecrow suggested chopping down a tall tree standing near the edge of the ditch. The Tin Woodman used his sharp axe to chop it nearly through, and the Lion pushed it down so it fell across the gulf. The travellers then carefully walked across this wooden bridge to the other side.
• The scarecrow was intelligent:
When they reached the second, wider gulf, it was the Scarecrow who gave the brilliant idea of chopping down a tree to make a bridge. Later, when the fierce Kalidahs were chasing them across the tree, he quickly told the Tin Woodman to chop off their end of the bridge, plunging the beasts into the ditch and saving everyone.
• The lion was brave:
Even though the Lion was terrified of falling, he bravely carried his friends across the first deep ditch on his back. Later, when the terrifying Kalidahs attacked, he did not run away. Instead, he stood between the beasts and his friends, giving a terrible roar to protect Dorothy, fully prepared to fight them as long as he was alive.
(1) Imagine you are Dorothy and write about the day's events in 5-8 lines in your (Dorothy's) diary.
Dear Diary,
Today was an exhausting and scary day! We came across a deep ditch, but the Lion bravely jumped across with us on his back. Later, we found an even wider gulf. The clever Scarecrow had the Woodman chop down a tree to make a bridge. As we crossed it, two terrifying Kalidahs chased us! The Lion roared to protect me, and the Woodman quickly chopped our end of the bridge, sending the beasts crashing down. Finally, we reached a beautiful land with bright sunshine and flowers. I am so tired but happy we are safe!
(2) Imagine you are the lion and someone is interviewing you. Write the answers to the following questions.
Q: Who were your companions on the way to Oz?
My companions were a sweet little girl named Dorothy, her dog Toto, a Scarecrow made of straw, and a Woodman made entirely of tin.
Q: How did you take the others across the ditch? Were you afraid?
I told them to climb on my back one by one, and I took great leaps to cross the ditch. Yes, my heart was pounding! I was terribly afraid of falling, but I knew I had to try to help my friends.
Q: Were you afraid of the Kalidahs? Why did you decide to fight with them?
Oh, I was absolutely terrified of those monstrous beasts! But when they rushed toward us, I decided to fight because I could not let them tear Dorothy and my friends to pieces. I had to protect them as long as I was alive.
Q: What did it feel like after you were out of the forest?
When we finally stepped out of that gloomy forest into the bright sunshine and saw the green meadows and beautiful flowers, I felt a huge wave of relief and joy. It was wonderful to be safe and alive!
Note: Words like and, but, because, so, and or are called Conjunctions. They are joining words used to connect two sentences or parts of sentences together.
Read the highlighted words in the passage aloud. Notice how they connect ideas (e.g., "...afraid of falling, myself," said the Cowardly Lion, "but I suppose there is nothing to do but try it. So get on my back and we will make the attempt.")