Welcome to Chapter 19: “Attacked by the Fighting Trees!” In this post, you’ll find teaching strategies focused on figurative language, conflict, and creative problem-solving.
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🌳⚔️ Summary
Chapter 19: “Attacked by the Fighting Trees”
Dorothy, Toto, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, and the Lion set out on their journey to the Land of the South to seek help from Glinda the Good Witch. On the first day, the travelers walk through meadows filled with flowers and share their thoughts about Oz, deciding he is genuinely a good man. Their spirits remain high as they camp under the stars, with no shelter nearby.
On the second day, the group reaches a forest. When the Scarecrow tries to enter, a large tree grabs him and throws him back. The Tin Woodman chops off the branch so they can continue. As Toto walks past, the tree snatches him, causing the dog to howl. The Tin Woodman chops off another limb, and Toto is freed.
The travelers press forward and discover a large white porcelain wall deep within the forest.
Chapter 19: “Attacked by the Fighting Trees” Projects
Mentor Sentences
One way to turn classic literature into a powerful teaching tool is to pull mentor sentences straight from the text. Instead of random worksheets, students get to see grammar, punctuation, and style in action—inside a story they’re already reading.
1. “As for the Lion, he sniffed the fresh air with delight and whisked his tail from side to side in pure joy at being in the country again, while Toto ran around them and chased the moths and butterflies, barking merrily all the time.
📌 Focus: Present Participle Phrase
- “barking merrily all the time” adds detail.
- Practice: Students write their own sentence with an action tagged on.
2. It was smooth, like the surface of a dish, and higher than their heads.
📌 Focus: Simile with like*
- “like …a dish” compares the wall.
- Practice: Students write a simile: “The ___ was like ___.”
3. They all ran forward and passed under the tree without injury, except Toto, who was caught by a small branch and shaken until he howled.
📌 Focus: Past Tense Verbs
- “ran,” “passed,” “caught,” “shaken”
- Practice: Students underline past tense verbs in their own writing.
Would You Rather
- Would you rather battle fighting trees or hammer-heads?
- Would you rather be Tin Woodman (with an axe) or Scarecrow (hard to hurt)?
- Would you rather battle enchanted trees or escape from a field of poppies that make you sleep?
Focus Skills
Constructed Response Skill – Cause and Effect
Students identify cause/effect relationships from the chapter and explain how one event leads to another. Examples include:
- Dorothy wants to return to Kansas. → The group travels to the Land of the South to find Glinda.
- The group encounters a forest. → The Tin Woodman uses his axe to protect the others.
- There is no shelter. → The travelers sleep under the stars.
Use the included organizer to map out the chain of events and highlight character decisions.
Standards: RL.5.5, RL.6.5, RL.7.1
Language Arts Skill – Analogies: Cause/Effect, Tool/User, Item/Purpose
Students create analogies using relationships from the chapter:
- Cause/Effect: determination : journey :: fear : caution
- Tool/User: axe : Tin Woodman :: whistle : Dorothy
- Item/Purpose: Golden Cap : summoning :: balloon : escape
Use the included organizer to create examples for each type of analogy.
Standards: L.5.5.c, L.6.5.b, L.7.5.b
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