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WebQuest: A Christmas Carol

A Christmas Carol WebQuest

7th Grade English Language Arts

 

The cover of a book titled 'A Christmas Carol' by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Arthur Rackham.

 

Charles Dickens is said to be one of the greatest writers that has ever lived. We would like you to spend some time getting to know this man and learning what the world was like as he knew it.

 

You will be directed to various links to answer the following questions. (There are NINE PARTS and 17 total questions.) Be sure to record your answers on the provided packet. NOTE: ALL ANSWERS NEED TO BE WRITTEN USING COMPLETE SENTENCES!

 

PART ONE: Please begin by clicking on the following link: Dicken's Timeline

  1. What was the date of Charles Dickens’ birth?
  2. How old was Dickens when the family moved to London, England?
  3. What was Dickens doing right before he died?
  4. What famous story did Dickens write in 1843?

 

PART TWO: Go to: Map of London

Here, you’ll find a map of London-as it was during Dickens’ lifetime. Please locate and click on Camden Town.

  1. Which family from A Christmas Carol lived in Camden Town?

 

PART THREE: Go to: Victorian Facts

Dickens lived during the Victorian era. Read the first five paragraphs on this website.

  1. Summarize this time period in one paragraph (5 sentences).
  1. What made Victorians “Victorian” more than anything?  In other words, what attitude did Victorians have which made them different from people before them?

  

PART FOUR:

  1. Go to: Money. List the three types of money used in England during this time.
  1. Go to: Diseases. Please list and define three major diseases during Dicken’s time. 
  1. ______________________:
  2. ______________________:
  3. ______________________: 

 

PART Five: Go to: Poor Law

  1. Workhouses were built to house poor Victorians, who worked for a small amount of food and money. Name five foods that poor Victorians were given here.

 

PART SIX: Go to: School Day

  1. Please read the list of 10 rules, which were found in a typical Victorian classroom. In your opinion, which rules should still be used in schools today? Explain why.

 

PART SEVEN: Go to: Reading Charles Dickens

  1. In the nineteenth century, who read Dickens?
  1. Why, as we read Dickens today, is it challenging?

 

PART EIGHT: Go to: Family

  1. Dickens married Catherine Thompson Hogarth in 1836. How many children did they have?

 

PART NINE: Go to: Dicken's Works

  1. Dickens wrote 20 major novels during his lifetime. Please write down four of them; they should match up with the dates listed.
    1837-39: 
    1849-50: 
    1859: 
    1860-61: 

 

PART TEN: Go to: Major Events

  1. What major event happened in 1865? 
  1. Exactly five years later, what major event happened, and what was the date?

 

*This assignment has been adapted from Ms. Hanson's Christmas Carol Project at Becker Middle School.