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'A Christmas Carol' Stave 3: the Cratchits' Christmas

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Lesson details

Learning outcome

I can understand the role of the Cratchit family in 'A Christmas Carol'.

Key learning points

  1. The Cratchits embody the values of Christmas: family; community; empathy; gratitude and Christmas spirit.
  2. Bob Cratchit’s name reflects that he is underpaid and impoverished.
  3. Tiny Tim was allegedly inspired by Dickens’ nephew, Harry, who was also disabled, but sadly passed away.
  4. Tiny Tim is a symbol of Scrooge’s selfishness and cruelty, as well as hope for his transformation.
  5. Dickens uses the Cratchits to humanise the poor and illustrate the direct (and personal) consequences of selfishness.

Keywords

  • Theme - A theme is a central idea or message that is explored through a literary work.

  • Gratitude - If someone demonstrates gratitude, they are thankful for what they have.

  • Resourceful - Being resourceful means finding clever ways to overcome difficulties or challenges.

  • To exemplify - If a character exemplifies a theme, they are an example or representation of it.

  • To humanise - If you humanise something, you present it as a human being, so that people can empathise with it.

Common misconception

Students often believe that Bob Cratchit represents the most poor group of people in society.

Whilst Bob Cratchit certainly struggles for money and has to be resourceful to feed his family, he still has a job and a home.

Teacher tip

For the second task of the lesson in learning cycle two, print the statement, get pupils to colour code the different sections of the statement and get them to find evidence and express their opinions in these colours.

Equipment

This lesson requires a copy of Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol'.

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

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2026), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Prior knowledge starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Which spirit visits Scrooge in the third stave of 'A Christmas Carol'?

Marley's Ghost.
The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come.
The Ghost of Christmas Past.
Correct answer: The Ghost of Christmas Present.

Q2.
Which of the following is not an aspect of the Ghost of Christmas Present's appearance in 'A Christmas Carol'?

Holding a glowing torch.
A Green robe.
Giant stature.
Correct answer: Black leather boots.
A bare chest.

Q3.
Which of the following scenes of Christmas present does Scrooge not see in Stave 3 of 'A Christmas Carol'?

The Cratchits eating their goose and toasting Scrooge's health.
The miners and lighthouse men singing Christmas songs around a fire.
Fred's Christmas party that Scrooge is invited to.
Correct answer: Belle opening presents with her family on Christmas Day.
The Christmas food markets in London.

Q4.
Starting with the most wealthy, put the Victorian social classes in order of how much wealth they had.

1 - Aristocrats.
2 - Upper-class.
3 - Middle-class.
4 - Working class.
5 - Criminal class.

Q5.
What is a theme?

A recurring object that features throughout a literary work.
A character or characters that appear consistently throughout a literary work.
Correct answer: A central idea or message that is explored through a literary work.
A brief introduction to the literary work written by the writer.
A colour that appears often throughout a literary work.

Q6.
Which of the following are themes in 'A Christmas Carol'?

Laziness.
Correct answer: Injustice.
Correct answer: Childhood.
Prison.
Jealousy.

Assessment exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
In 'A Christmas Carol', Bob's youngest, disabled son is called...

Correct Answer: Tiny Tim, tiny Tim, Tiny tim., tiny tim, Tiny Tim.

Q2.
Allegedly, Tiny Tim (from Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol') was inspired by...

Dickens' son Harry.
Dickens' cousin Harry.
Dickens' younger brother Harry.
Correct answer: Dickens' nephew Harry.
Dickens' uncle Harry.

Q3.
In 'A Christmas Carol', what is the significance of Bob Cratchit's name?

Bob was a popular name for a man. Dickens is showing how poverty was everywhere.
A bob is a short hairstyle, showing that Bob is short of money.
Cratchit sounds like 'catch it' because Bob is always chasing after money.
Correct answer: A bob is slang for a shilling, showing that Bob isn't paid much money.
Cratchit sounds like 'catch it': Dickens is showing that poverty is infectious.

Q4.
Which of the following themes do the Cratchits exemplify in 'A Christmas Carol'?

Jealousy.
Correct answer: Gratitude.
Childhood.
Wealth.
Correct answer: Family.

Q5.
Which of these explanations best describes why Dickens uses the word "withered" to describe Tiny Tim in Stave 3 of 'A Christmas Carol'?

He's showing how little food Tiny Tim is fed because the Cratchits are poor.
He's showing how miserable and beaten down Tiny Tim is because of his condition.
He's describing him like a plant that withers in the sunlight of Bob's care.
Correct answer: He's illustrating that Tiny Tim's life is fading and he doesn't have long left.

Q6.
In Stave 3 of 'A Christmas Carol', the spirit repeats Scrooge's words "If he be like to die, he had better do it, and decrease the surplus population” back at him to show him...

how overpopulated London was and therefore how necessary population control was.
that he is making fun of Scrooge's actions in Stave 1.
Correct answer: how cruel and ignorant he has been in wishing the poor dead.
that he agrees with Scrooge and thinks that Tiny Tim should be left to die.

To help you plan your 10 English lesson on: 'A Christmas Carol' Stave 3: the Cratchits' Christmas, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...