What happens?
Dorothy and the Scarecrow walked through the trees and were startled to discover a tin man with an axe in his hands. He had rusted so badly that he could not move so he asked Dorothy to oil his joints. Dorothy explained that they were going to see the great wizard, Oz, and the Tin Woodman asked if Oz would give him a heart. As they continued walking, the Tin Woodman told how the Wicked Witch had enchanted his axe and how he came to be made of tin.
Have a think ..
Take a moment to think about these questions:
The Tin Woodman believes “brains do not make one happy, and happiness is the best thing in the world”.
What makes you happy and why?
Does your happiness come from your brain or your heart?
The Tin Woodman can’t leave his house without his oil can or he gets stuck.
Is there anything you can’t leave the house without?
‘It must be inconvenient to be made of flesh,’ said the Scarecrow, thoughtfully, ‘for you must sleep, and eat and drink.’
What else do you need to survive?
Focus on .. prosthetics
The Tin Woodman has all his body parts replaced with tin ones. These days scientists and inventors are doing amazing things with bionic arms and other limbs.
Find out more
Watch these videos to find out more about prosthetics.
Challenge yourself!
Try designing a bionic limb for yourself, with details of all the functions it would have.
You can do this in whatever way you like. Our Help with Challenges page has some good ideas.
More to explore
If you loved this chapter, why not check out some more ideas
More to read
These books should be available through your secondary school librarian. If we’ve found a free version online, we’ve added the link after each book.
The Iron Man by Ted Hughes is a giant metal man who appears out of the sea
Runaway robot – Frank Cottrell Boyce
Pig-heart boy by Malorie Blackman is about a boy who is given a rather unusual transplant.
Mega Robo Bros by Neill Cameron is a comic book about super-powered, squabbling robot brothers.
Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett is a beautiful story about the god of winter who falls in love with a human girl.
