The Christmas Carol

7th grade Literature Unit Created by Mary Moore and Leslie Lause

Unit Objectives
CA 7-6 Students will develop and apply reading comprehension skills.

A Note from the Author:

I have endeavoured in this Ghostly little book, to raise the Ghost of an Idea, which shall not put my readers out of humour with themselves, with each other, with the season, or with me. May it haunt their houses pleasantly, and no one wish to lay it. Their faithful Friend and Servant, C. D. December, 1843.
www.literature.org/authors/dickens-charles/christmas-carol/

Who was Charles Dickens?

Charles Dickens scavenger hunt
Scavenger hunt

Video

Scavenger hunt answer key

http://www.unitedstreaming.com/search/assetDetail.cfm?guidAssetID=6E660614-4CC3-476F-B5B0-015E586772EB

www.lessonplanspage.com/LASSCharlesDickensInternetScavengerHunt91

Explore Victorian England

****Be sure to check out the life expectancy. Then check out your life expectancy.

Cross Curricular Link: Science

Gas/Electric Lighting: In 1843, when A Christmas Carol was published, not all streets were lit by lamps. Gas lamps had been place on some streets as early as 1807, but in other areas pedestrians needed to carry their own lanterns to light their way.

 Early lamps in homes used fuels such as vegetable oil or fish or whale oils. Kerosene became more popular after 1859. Coal gas, however, was the source of most street lighting, even though it was considered to be as safe as other fuel sources.

 The first incandescent light was patented in 1841, but electric lights were not commercially successful until 1879, when Edison produced a carbon-filament lamp. Electric street lighting was soon afterward introduced in large cities in Europe and America.
Slides 3-5 are taken from 2002 Teachers edition Pg. 258 McDougal Littell The Language of Literature

Visualizing
As you read

Chart

When you read, use the stage directions to visualize the characters, the setting and the action. In other words, picture it as if you were sitting in the audience. As you read, picture where the scene takes place. Imagine the characters and what they do. Use the chart to note important details in each scene of A Christmas Carol. Doing so will help you visualize the scenes.
Unit Two Resource Book McDougal Littell The Language of Literature

Christmas Carol Vocabulary

A Dickens of a Party A WebQuest Activity

http://www.readwritethink.org/lesson_images/lesson238 /dickens_WebQuest.html#introduction

Christmas Carol Quiz

Click

http://www.perryweb.com/Dickens/puzzle_carol.shtml

Text vs. Production vs. Movie

Compare and Contrast

A
Scroogify a Christmas Carol Students are to take a melody, of a carol that they are familiar with, and rewrite the lyrics as if Scrooge would have done so. Imagine that you were visited by the 3 spirits. Describe or draw what each would show you (characters, places, and events) Carefully review Dickens description of Marley and the 3 ghosts. Sketch colorful portraits of each. Label your sketches and write a paragraph explaining the purpose of each ghost and how it affected Scrooge.

B
Pretend you are a reporter from London newspaper and interview Scrooge. See teacher for more info.

C
Students are to research charitable organizations in the Owensville area. Choose one and volunteer a day. Write about your experience volunteering for the day.
Choose an issue that you are interested in promoting that would help others illiteracy, poverty, some illness then do some research and write an article for the paper. See teacher for more information

Elaborate the comparison and contrasting of the movie, play, and production. Write an essay diving into these similarities and differences.

Write a short story sequel to A Christmas Carol describing how Scrooge lives out his everyday life and how he celebrates Christmas 10 years later after his haunting.

Research a modern day philanthropist. Make a presentation to share with the rest of the class so that we can learn about them also.

Scroogify a Christmas song

Students are to take a melody, of a carol that they are familiar with, and re-write the lyrics as if Scrooge would have done so. Here is my example set to the tune of "Jingle Bells."
Here is my example set to the tune of "Jingle Bells." "Bah Humbug!" Walking to my counting-house The streets are filled with bums O?er them I go, feeling like a louse. Bells in the church tower ring Making my spirit low What melancholy sting Off with three spirits I go Chorus: Bah Humbug, bah humbug, Christmas is for fools. The season isn?t for spending money and breaking all the rules. Bah Humbug, bah humbug, Christmas is for fools. I wish they would be meloncholy And then I would be jolly

http://www.myschoolonline.com/page/0,1871,16656-134607-21-44486,00.html