'A Christmas Carol' Stave 1: Scrooge the Miser
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can understand how Scrooge is portrayed in the opening of the novella
Key learning points
- Scrooge is portrayed as a miser
- Dickens experienced poverty firsthand and dedicated his life to campaigning for better legislation to support the poor
- Dickens uses the setting of Scrooge's lodgings to reflect his miserly nature
- Dickens is critical towards those who lack compassion for the poor, like Scrooge
- Scrooge represents selfish and greedy upper-middle class Victorian citizens, who showed little empathy for the poor
Keywords
Preface - The preface comes at the beginning of a book and introduces its aims or scope.
Impoverished - Someone impoverished would have very little money and very few possessions.
Staves - Dickens calls his chapters ‘staves’.
Avaricious - Being avaricious means having an extreme greed for wealth or possessions.
Miser - A miser is a person who hoards wealth and spends as little money as possible.
Common misconception
Pupils think that Scrooge keeps his money to himself so that he can spend it on himself.
Scrooge's frugality also extends to his own existence: Scrooge refuses to spend money even on himself, choosing to live a meagre lifestyle.
Teacher tip
Make links to any other units pupils may have studied which cover the Victorian era, including topics such as poverty, child exploitation and social injustice.
Equipment
You will need access to a copy of Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol' for this lesson.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What century was 1843 in?
Q2.What do we call the era between 1837 and 1901?
Q3.Which law was reformed in 1843 to tackle poverty in England?
Q4.According to the 1834 Poor Law, who had to go to the Workhouse?
Q5.What might the preface of a book be?
Q6.Which of the following is an example of pathetic fallacy?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.In relation to 'A Christmas Carol', choose the correct statements about Marley.
Q2.What year did Charles Dickens publish 'A Christmas Carol'?
Q3.Which two events occurred in Dickens' life?
Q4.Which values did Dickens want to champion through his novella 'A Christmas Carol'? Choose the most appropriate responses.
Q5.Starting with the first, put the plot events from Stave 1 of 'A Christmas Carol' in order from first to last.
Q6.In relation to 'A Christmas Carol', match the items with what they represent.
represents generosity (Scrooge's are always very small).
represents Scrooge's ignorance
represents Scrooge's miserliness - he denies himself luxury
represent Scrooge's cold-hearted nature
To help you plan your 10 English lesson on: 'A Christmas Carol' Stave 1: Scrooge the Miser, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 10 English lesson on: 'A Christmas Carol' Stave 1: Scrooge the Miser, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 4 English lessons from the A Christmas Carol: Scrooge's redemption unit, dive into the full secondary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.