Charles Dickens
Lesson plans for Great Expectations and other works

|Biography, Criticism, and Background| |A Christmas Carol| |David Copperfield| |Great Expectations| |Oliver Twist| |A Tale of Two Cities|

Charles Dickens
The BBC presents a short, animated biography that will work with many age levels. Scroll down for related activities.

Charles Dickens
Extensive criticism and biography from the Internet Public Library.

Charles Dickens
A collection of links to online works, biography, historical background, and other online sites.

Charles Dickens
A great collection of scholarly links from the Victorian Web: biography, analysis, e-texts, historical context.

Charles Dickens: A Tale of Ambition and Genius
Vocabulary, discussion questions, and extended activities to accompany the A&E video. The video may be purchased or taped; scroll down to find scheduled air dates.

Dickens Made Simple
An extensive site, with pages dedicated to Oliver Twist, A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations, Dombey and Son, The Pickwick Papers, Hard Times, David Copperfield, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and A Christmas Carol. The "BookLinks" page has links to biography, criticism, and e-books, as well.

The Dickens Page
Extensive collection of links to a variety of Dickensian sites.

Discovering Dickens
This standards-based CyberGuide helps students learn about the life and times of Charles Dickens.

Stay Tuned for our Next Episode: Teaching Dickens as a Serial Publication
An innovative approach to Great Expectations that would also work with other novels.

Victorian England
This pathfinder lists a variety of background information, including a bibliography of print resources. It is designed for middle school but will prove valuable for all grade levels.

Beyond the Story: A Dickens of a Party
After researching 19th century England, students attend a party as characters from A Christmas Carol.

Book-A-Minute Classics: A Christmas Carol
Just for fun, the story reduced to a one-minute read.

Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol
Links to background information, comprehension questions, vocabulary words, and grammar practice drawn from the text.

A Christmas Carol
Printable text.

A Christmas Carol
This 15-page document addresses 95 vocabulary words drawn from the book. Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader or compatible application for access.

A Christmas Carol Comprehension Questions
Twenty-two comprehension questions.

Learning Guide for A Christmas Carol from Turner Learning
In addition to a synopsis and list of characters, this site includes student handouts and discussion questions. Not to be missed: "Being Tiny Tim" and "The Many Versions of A Christmas Carol." This site was designed to support Turner's 1999 production, starring Patrick Stewart, but the materials are not bound to one production.

Scrooge for Mayor
Students research conditions in London and form teams to manage Scrooge's campaign for Mayor. This standards-based, interdisciplinary WebQuest was designed for gifted 7th graders. Rubrics are available at the site.

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