'A Christmas Carol': a hopeful tale
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can analyse the extent to which 'A Christmas Carol’ is a hopeful tale.
Key learning points
- ‘A Christmas Carol’ can be considered a hopeful tale about redemption.
- The novella teaches us about the importance of social responsibility, empathy, generosity and charity.
- Dickens outlines the key virtues and values required to create a fairer and more equal society.
- A detailed essay constantly links back to the writer’s methods and intentions.
- A coherent, conceptualised response follows the same line of argument.
Keywords
Inspirational - Something that makes you feel encouraged or hopeful.
Social responsibility - Somebody who believes in social responsibility invests in their community and supports those in need.
Didactic - Something that is intended to teach a moral lesson is didactic.
Injustice - A lack of fairness or justice.
Propaganda - Information or ideas spread in an attempt to influence others.
Common misconception
Students often don't realise that they need to carefully consider what the question is asking them.
Before students can plan anything, they need to consider what the question is actually asking them to do. Rephrasing the question can help.
Teacher tip
Model to students how to rephrase the question to make it easier to understand. For example, 'to what extent is the novella a hopeful tale' can be rephrased to 'to what extent is the novella an inspirational story?'
Equipment
You will need a copy of Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol' for this lesson.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
Loading...
Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.In 'A Christmas Carol', what is the name of the redeemed hero?
Q2.In which year did Dickens deliver his speech in Manchester about the terrible attitudes of the rich towards the poor?
Q3.In 'A Christmas Carol', which spirit remains silent?
Q4.What do we not learn from 'A Christmas Carol'?
Q5.How does Scrooge respond to seeing himself as a young, neglected boy in Stave 2 of 'A Christmas Carol'?
Q6.Complete the quotation from the Ghost of Christmas Present in Stave 3 of 'A Christmas Carol': "The happiness he gives is quite as great as if it cost a ."
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which of the following words is a synonym for 'hopeful'?
Q2.Who did Dickens write the novella for?
Q3.Starting with the first, put the components of paragraph outline planning in order.
Q4.Which section of your paragraph outline summarises your argument in each paragraph with a sharp focus on writer’s purpose?
Q5.Which of the following does not make a concise and thoughtful critical response?
Q6.Match the vocabulary up to its definition.
something that makes you feel encouraged or hopeful
investing in one's community
something that is intended to teach a moral lesson
a lack of fairness or justice
information spread in an attempt to influence others
To help you plan your 11 English lesson on: 'A Christmas Carol': a hopeful tale, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 11 English lesson on: 'A Christmas Carol': a hopeful tale, 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: a Christian parable unit, dive into the full secondary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.