{"id":1960,"date":"2026-03-20T15:00:32","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T19:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/schooladvancement.com\/?p=1960"},"modified":"2026-03-20T19:04:59","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T23:04:59","slug":"the-5-elements-of-the-wizard-of-oz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/schooladvancement.com\/?p=1960","title":{"rendered":"The 5 Elements of The Wizard of Oz"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Six years ago this month, our nation shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic.\u00a0 Last year, the stock market lost 10% of its value from the beginning of February through the middle of March.\u00a0 This year, we have not only a war between Russia and Ukraine, but Israel and the United States against Iran.<\/p>\n

Since there’s enough bad news happening, let’s look at something a little different today.<\/p>\n

In 2015, my daughter went to see The Wizard of Oz on stage in Pittsburgh.\u00a0 She’s been a fan of the movie all her life, and as a former teacher with a Master’s degree in education, still enjoys relaxing while wearing “ruby slippers” – when she can!\u00a0 Even though she’s married and has two wonderful children, she’ll also be the first to tell you, “There’s no place like home.”<\/p>\n

There are two things that are somewhat interesting about her mindset.\u00a0 First, I met my wife on a retreat when we were young adults.\u00a0 There were 4 of us that banded together on that weekend and became very good friends.\u00a0 My future wife was nicked named Dorothy, and I received the moniker of the Scarecrow, which hearkens back to a comment one of my schoolteachers made about me and my brain when I was a youngster.<\/p>\n

But realizing there were four companions along the journey along the yellow-brick road, and, since I had a few diplomas already, I could begin to see the relationship of the characters to the five learning domains.<\/p>\n

I know what you’re thinking – there are only three:\u00a0 cognitive, affective, and kinesthetic.<\/p>\n

While that’s true of most education texts, remember that “Three leads to four leads to five” to complete the system.<\/p>\n

The fourth learning domain is the conative one.\u00a0 As posited by William Huitt and Sheila Cain in 2005, “Conation refers to the connection of knowledge and affect to behavior and is associated with the issue of ‘why’ (source: http:\/\/edpsycinteractive.org\/papers\/conative.pdf<\/a>, accessed 1\/19\/2016).\u00a0 It’s the love of learning, or learning for learning’s sake.\u00a0 It’s the connection to the other three learning domains.<\/p>\n

To relate this to the physical characteristics of a person, it’s where the other three learning domains intersect.\u00a0 The conative learner’s usual response to “why” they’re learning about something is, “I just really love learning!”\u00a0 And I’ll bet you can start to see the connection, since it’s at the heart of the matter.<\/p>\n

And remember, love isn’t just a feeling – it’s a decision, a feeling, and an action – most profoundly, the action of sacrifice.\u00a0 Another “three in one.”<\/p>\n

The scarecrow is the cognitive entity.\u00a0 He’s all about the knowledge.\u00a0 Knowing which way to go, and devising plans for the group.<\/p>\n

Dorothy is the kinesthetic entity.\u00a0 She just wants to get back home, and sets off on a journey to get there.\u00a0 She’s told what to do and does it, and learns what happens when you throw water on a witch.<\/p>\n

The Lion is the affective entity.\u00a0 The term “cowardly” gives it away that he’s all about emotion.\u00a0 The seat of emotion is in one’s “gut.”\u00a0 It’s why we can become sick to the stomach when we hear disturbing news.\u00a0 The lion has no problem sharing his emotions.<\/p>\n

The Tin Man is the conative entity.\u00a0 He is the heart, crying even though he knows he’ll rust if he does.\u00a0 He’s also the one who tries to moderate the other three of the group.<\/p>\n

It’s interesting to see that if we draw a vertical from the head to the gut, and a horizontal across the tops of one’s arms (associated with physical labor, carrying burdens and “doing” work), the intersection of those two lines is at one’s heart.\u00a0 Try it – and then realize what you just did.<\/p>\n

So what about the fifth entity?\u00a0 That would be the spiritual one, and, of course, associated with the Wizard.\u00a0 He was the one that the people looked to for salvation.\u00a0 Interestingly, he knew what each of the companions on the journey needed, even though they didn’t get what they thought they wanted.<\/p>\n

He was also the one who sacrificed his position so he could save the one who was lost and bring her back to her family.<\/p>\n

Does that remind you of someone else who sacrificed His life so He could redeem us?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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