A Christmas Carol Unit Plan
by Kate McEntire
Informational Websites and Teacher Resources
1. “A Humbug’s Grammar”
http://www.leasttern.com/Grammar/PhrasesClauses.html
This clever website provides grammar lesson and exercises that use lines about and from A
Christmas Carol.
2. Andrew Moore’s Teacher Resource on A Christmas Carol
http://www.teachit.co.uk/armoore/gcse/xmascarol.htm
This website, created by a teacher, contains invaluable information for teachers and
students on various aspects of A Christmas Carol, including summaries of each stave,
themes and motifs, symbols and imagery, settings, the author’s techniques, etc.
3. “Allegory is a Pretty Word”
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/KaryssaBlair/2009/11/allegory_is_a_pretty_word.html
Charles Dickens’ novella A Christmas Carol is an allegory in itself with various other
allegories that teach valuable lessons on the human spirit and the human condition.
Information on allegory—and allegory in this piece of literature—can be hard to find, and
this post from a woman’s blog provides accessible, concise, pertinent information that an
English teacher of A Christmas Carol would find valuable.
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4. “The Victorian Web”
http://www.victorianweb.org/
A teacher would definitely use this site to learn background information on Victorian
England. It’s a thorough overview of all aspects of Victorian society, culture, politics, and
religion. Of particular interest is the link to a page with further links to information on
Victorian literature and genres.
5. BBC’s Biography on Charles Dickens
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/dickens_charles.shtml
This is a concise and informative bio of Charles Dickens from the British Broadcasting
Corporation.
6. Charles Dickens Website
http://dickens.fi/dickens.html
This website contains thorough and interesting information on Dickens’ works, life and
family, and his city, London. It also has links to other Dickens websites as well as to a site
with information on Victorian England.
7. David Perdue’s “Charles Dickens Page”
http://charlesdickenspage.com/index.html
This website provides comprehensive information on both Charles Dickens and A
Christmas Carol. It contains information ranging from Victorian England to Dickens’ life to
notes on various elements of his famous novella.
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Educational Websites for Students
1. Disney’s “Scrooge’s Soarin’ Star Ride”
http://disney.go.com/games/play3/?content=379318#/games/play3/&content=379318
While this game has no inherent educational value, most English teachers know that it can
be hard to motivate students to read—or enjoy—classic literature. This game is pure fun,
and helping Scrooge navigate the night sky over London might help students become
excited about the Christmas classic, A Christmas Carol.
2. “Muck and Brass” Game
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/games/victorian_muckbrass/index_embed.shtml
In this interactive game on BBC’s website, students serve as an advisor to a town councillor
in Victorian England, and they help to make economic decisions that will impact the city.
This game is ideal for helping students understand the society and politics of the Victorian
Era, particularly during the Industrial Revolution. This knowledge is important to the
understanding of the socio-economic issues that Dickens addresses in A Christmas Carol.
3. Virtual Tour of Dickens’ Birthplace
http://www.charlesdickensbirthplace.co.uk/virtual_guide.htm#
This website, from the museum located in Charles Dickens’ birthplace, provides a virtual
guide to the house. The video would be a good resource for students, providing
background information on Dickens before they read A Christmas Carol.
4. “Bleak House” Animation
This short, student-friendly animation, which also includes a game, provides information on
Charles Dickens, his life and the influences on his work.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/bleakhouse/animation.shtml
5. “Gad’s Hill Place” Online Quizzes and Games
http://www.perryweb.com/Dickens/puzzle_main.shtml
This website provides student-friendly and educational quizzes and games related to
Charles Dickens and his works, including A Christmas Carol.
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6. Kaboose’s “Christmas Around the World”
http://holidays.kaboose.com/xmas-around.html
Since Dickens’ A Christmas Carol was central to popularizing the modern notion of
Christmas as a jovial, celebratory time, not just a pious Christian holiday, this site would be
relevant to a teacher’s unit on the famous novella. It provides links to information on
Christmas traditions celebrated around the world.
7. Fun Trivia’s Online Quizzes and Games
http://www.funtrivia.com/quizzes/literature/dickens,_charles/a_christmas_carol.html
This website contains quizzes and games related to Charles Dickens and his famous work,
A Christmas Carol.
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Lesson Plans and Student Activities
1. A Christmas Carol Scavenger Hunt Webquest
http://students.rochester.k12.mi.us/west/A%20Christmas%20Carol/a_christmas_carol.htm
This website is intended to be used with students who have read the play version of A
Christmas Carol; however, it certainly works with students who have read the novella and
who would benefit from a better understanding of the cultural allusions of the classic text.
The site maps out the topics that the students are to research and also provides links to
online resources in which students can “hunt” for the answers to the questions. There is
also a rubric that shows the students how they will be assessed.
2. Clack Middle School’s Comprehensive Lesson Plan on A Christmas Carol
http://abilene.region14.net/webs/woodardt/target_lesson_plan.htm
This unit plan, with resources for teachers and students such an informative PowerPoint,
also includes detailed instructions to activities for students. Such activities include a
character analysis of Scrooge, a student-created PowerPoint on one of the staves, a
computer-generated Venn diagram comparing A Christmas Carol and Dr. Seuss’ How the
Grinch Stole Christmas, and finally, a one day “living” advent calendar in which students
must use technology in research, development, and/or presentation of the project. This
website provides activity ideas that include technology and that make the study of this
classic piece of literature relevant to today’s students.
3. “Christmas Carol Chronology”
http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/3093
This lesson plan idea focuses on developing the skills of identifying important elements of
plot and of arranging them sequentially. It involves both collaborative group work and
independent practice.
4. Caroline La Magna’s Electronic Classroom
http://eclassroom.110mb.com/Dickens/index.html
This website provides original, “real-life application,” and challenging student activities:
“Design a Public Awareness Campaign—Victorian Workhouses,” “Write a Persuasive
Essay—What Really Caused the Cholera Epidemic,” “Write a Compare/Contrast Essay—
Christmas Traditions, “Create a Timeline—Victorian England from 1832-1843,” “Construct a
Model of a Victorian Street,” and an enrichment activity in which students write a diary entry
from the perspective of a young adult living in Victorian England. This comprehensive site
provides students with “assignment details” so that they are clear as to the teacher’s
expectations. It also provides links to resources that will assist students in each of these
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activities. Finally, it includes rubrics for each project to help teachers assess the students’
final products.
5. Charles Dickens Dinner Party
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/beyond-story-dickensparty-238.html
This creative multiple-step project focuses on helping students “understand the values and
customs that Dickens’ characters represented in Victorian society” and involves many
different skills. Students first practice research and collaborative group work strategies by
working together to complete a webquest on the culture and society of the Victorian era.
Students learn the trait of “voice” through writing a first-person character analysis, and they
utilize presentation skills when they role play their chosen characters at the 19 th Century
Dinner Party. This website also includes an “instructional plan,” with details to help
teachers guide their students through each step of this activity.
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Images to Use
Figure 1: http://keepingthechristmasspiritalive365.blogspot.com/2010/11/sunday-song-god-bless-us-everyone.html
Figure 2: https://hedonblog.wordpress.com/tag/father-christmas/
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Figure 3: http://joyce1012.blogspot.com/2009_11_01_archive.html
Figure 4: http://www.victorian-era.org/victorian-christmas.html
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Figure 5: http://www.redbubble.com/people/doatley/art/3067626-a-christmas-carol
Figure 6: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/competition/2008/dec/05/dickens-christmas-carol-competition
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Figure 7: http://childrensbookalmanac.com/2010/12/a-christmas-carol/
Figure 8: http://www.classbrain.com/artholiday/publish/christmas_carol.shtml
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Figure 9: http://www.theatremacon.com/scroogephotos.html
Figure 10: http://imblowingup.com/blog2/2011/06/15/scrooge-the-past/
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