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David Copperfield Sample
David Copperfield Sample
B1
Stage 3 B1
Charles Dickens
Stage 3 B1
Charles Dickens
David Copperfield
David Copperfield looks back on the first twenty-five
years of his life. He’s only eight years old when his
mother, a pretty young widow, remarries.
Unfortunately, Mr Murdstone isn’t a good husband or
David Copperfield
father. David is sent away to school and only returns
home when tragedy strikes. Unloved and unwanted,
Stage 1
he’s sent to work in a factory. But David is a clever boy
and wants a better life for himself.
In this reader you’ll find:
- Information about Charles Dickens
Readers
- A section providing background and contextual
information
- A glossary of difficult words
- Comprehension and grammar activities including
B1 style exercises and 21st century skills activities
- Final test
Tags
Teen
Family | Friendship | Love | Adventure
Audio
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Classic
BN
EL LI R pp 36
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I s E er -32
Files
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David
Book Copperfield
brief
1
www.eligradedreaders.com
In this reader:
Glossary Explanation
of difficult words.
David
Copperfield
Illustrated by
Felicita Sala
Teen Readers
Contents
6 Main Characters
8 Before you read
10 Chapter 1 Mr Murdstone
18 Activities
20 Chapter 2 School
28 Activities
30 Chapter 3 Everything Changes
38 Activities
40 Chapter 4 A New Life
48 Activities
50 Chapter 5 Dora
58 Activities
60 Chapter 6 Endings and Beginnings
70 Activities
72 Focus on... Charles Dickens
74 Focus on... Life in Victorian Times
76 Focus on... CLIL - Education and Travel
78 Test Yourself
79 Syllabus
Main Characters
David Copperfield
He tells the story of his life from
childhood to middle age.
Dora Spenlow
David falls in
love with Dora
the first time he
sees her.
Peggotty
David’s nurse. She looks after
him as a child.
Miss Jane
Murdstone
Edward Murdstone Edward Murdstone’s
David’s stepfather. sister. She’s as bad as
He’s horrible to David.
6 her brother.
Clara Copperfield Uriah Heep
David’s mother. She’s unhappy after An evil criminal.
she marries Edward Murdstone.
Agnes Wickfield
Mr Micawber She’s about the same age as David
A kind middle-aged man. He’s the first and is a gentle, kind person.
person David stays with in London.
Vocabulary
1 Match the words with their definitions.
1 ■
f nurse
2 ■ orphan
3 ■ stepfather
4 ■ mourner
5 ■ niece
6 ■ nephew
7 ■ schoolmaster
8 ■ debtor
9 ■ clerk
Speaking
2 Look at the words above again. Use them
to talk about what you think will happen
in the story.
Discuss with a partner.
21st
Century
Skills
8
Grammar
3 Complete this text about David Copperfield with the
words in the box.
Speaking B1 Preliminary
4 In the story, David Copperfield talks about his life as a child
and growing up. Answer these questions about you.
1 Where do you live and who do you live with?
2 How many days a week do you go to school?
3 What’s your favourite subject? Why?
4 What do you like doing in your free time?
5 Who’s your best friend and why do you like him / her?
6 What kind of job would you like to do in the future? Why?
9
Chapter 1
Mr Murdstone
1
whiskers hair on side of a man’s face
2
uneasy not comfortable, worried
3
fortnight two weeks
4
cart people sat on this for travelling and it was pulled by horses
10
David Copperfield
1
broad wide
2
cosy comfortable and welcoming
3
approach get near
11
Charles Dickens
13
Charles Dickens
1
eyebrows the line of hair above your eyes
14
David Copperfield
1
rebuked spoken angrily to
2
cane stick used to punish someone
3
pinned held so that you can’t move
15
Charles Dickens
>
David
Think
Do you ever bites Mr
feel nervous at Murdstone’s
school? hand which
Why? / Why makes him
not? 1 even angrier
whisper speak very quietly
than before.
16
David Copperfield
17
After-reading Activities • Chapter 1
Reading Comprehension
1 Decide if the following sentences about Chapter 1 are
true (T) or false (F).
T F
David felt uncomfortable with Mr Murdstone
from the beginning. ■
3 ■
1 The Peggottys lived on the water. ■ ■
2 Peggotty knew about the marriage before David. ■ ■
3 David realised his life had changed with his
mother’s marriage. ■ ■
4 Miss Murdstone arrived on the same evening
David returned home. ■ ■
5 David’s mother tried to take control of the house again. ■ ■
6 David’s mother was afraid to help him
with his lessons when Mr Murdstone was there. ■ ■
7 David bit Mr Murdstone’s arm. ■ ■
21st
Speaking and Writing Century
Skills
2 In Chapter 1, we find out that David does his lessons at home
with his mother. Discuss these questions with a partner, then
write your answers.
1 Would you like your parents to teach you? Why? / Why not?
2 Do you prefer doing lessons online or in the classroom? Why?
3 Who’s your favourite teacher? Why?
4 What happens if you do something
that makes the teacher angry?
5 What do you think makes a good teacher?
6 Do you think teaching is a good job?
Why? / Why not?
18
Grammar
3 Write sentences using used to / didn’t use to with the prompts
below.
1 David’s mother / go out in the evenings.
2 Things / be different.
3 Mr Murdstone / live with them.
4 David’s mother / be affectionate.
5 David / enjoy his lessons.
Before-reading Activities
Speaking
4 Discuss the following questions with a partner.
1 Do you think David will be happy at school? Why? / Why not?
2 What will the school, teachers and other pupils be like?
Listening B1 Preliminary
4 5 Listen and complete the information about David’s school
with one word in each space.
House It was an unwelcoming
The school was called Salem _______.
(1) _______ building. When David arrived, the school was very
(2) _______ . There were no boys because it was the school
(3) _______ . The classroom was a horrible, dirty (4) _______ room
and it smelt terrible. David noticed that there were pieces of
(5) _______ on the floor. At one end of the room, there was a
(6) _______ on a desk that said: “Be careful. He bites.”
19
After-reading Activities • Chapter 6
Reading Comprehension
1 Decide if these sentences about Chapter 6 are correct (3)
or incorrect (X).
1 ■ Uriah Heep grew in height.
2 ■ Mrs Micawber burnt the little book.
3 ■ The Micawbers were living at Mr Wickfield’s house.
4 ■ Uriah Heep wanted to take the little book from Mr
Micawber.
5 ■ Mr Wickfield knew what he was doing when he signed the
important documents.
6 ■ Mr Wickfield didn’t want to make Heep a partner.
7 ■ Mr Wickfield’s business was doing well.
8 ■ Mr Wickfield was bankrupt.
9 ■ Agnes and Aunt Betsey acted in the same way to the news.
10 ■ Traddles decided to send Heep to prison.
Grammar
2 Complete the sentences with the present perfect of the verbs
below. Use for or since if necessary.
be hold love want steal
70
Reading B1 Preliminary
3 Choose the best answer, A, B, C or D to complete the text
about Chapter 6.
received a strange letter from Mr Micawber asking him to
David ________
meet in London. Mr Micawber was very upset so David
(1) ________ him to Highgate where his aunt and Mr Dick were.
Here, Mr Micawber (2) ________ them about how he wanted
everyone to know what a terrible criminal Uriah Heep was. They all
went to Canterbury and Mr Micawber (3) ________ them a little
burnt book with proof of all Uriah Heep’s fraud and treachery. They
threatened to (4) ________ Uriah in prison if he didn’t pay back all
the money he had stolen. Then Dora (5) ________worse and before
dying she asked to speak to Agnes, probably because she wanted
Agnes to look (6) ________ David.
A took B brought C gave D received
1 A invited B sent C went D gave
2 A spoke B told C said D talked
3 A saw B watched C showed D looked
4 A send B go C spend D put
5 A had B did C got D went
6 A for B after C forward D at
21st
Speaking Century
Skills
4 Discuss these questions about the story with a partner.
How much do you agree with each other?
1 Did you like the story? Why? / Why not?
2 Why do you think Dickens chose to tell the story through
David?
3 What differences are there between Agnes and Dora?
4 How does David change in the novel?
5 What do you think was the most difficult part of David’s life?
6 Would you like to read other books by Charles Dickens?
Why? / Why not?
71
Focus on...
Charles Dickens
1812
Charles Dickens
was a British writer
born in 1812.
Childhood
The happiest part of his
early years was spent in
Chatham, Kent with his
family, where Charles Factory worker
enjoyed reading books Then everything changed when
like Robinson Crusoe. his father was sent to prison for not
His proud father paying his debts. The rest of the family
encouraged him to sing moved into the prison except Charles
and act. who started working in a warehouse.
Although he only worked there for
a few months, this change from
gentleman to worker was very hard for
Charles and later gave him lots of ideas
for his books.
72
1834 1836 1865
Writer
At sixteen, Charles decided he wanted
to become a journalist and had to study
hard, but by 1832, he was a successful
reporter. However, he wanted to be a
writer and his first article was published
in 1834. He wrote for several magazines
and at twenty-five, he wrote his first
book, The Pickwick Papers. In 1837,
Oliver Twist started to appear in a
monthly magazine. Between 1836 and
1865, he wrote over twelve novels as
well as short stories, plays and non-
fiction books. His most famous novels
include A Christmas Carol (1843), David
Copperfield (1849-1850) and Great
Expectations (1860-61).
Family
In April 1836, Charles married 1836
Catherine Hogarth. They had
ten children but it wasn’t a happy
1858
marriage and in 1858, they
separated.
1870
Died
in 1870 suddenly,
leaving his last
novel unfinished.
73
Focus
Focus on...
on...
74
Working Children
Just as, many children in poor countries today have to work, many
children from poor families worked during Victorian times. Read these
questions and answers to find out more.
What age did children start without talking any breaks. In mines,
work? children were sent down the smaller
Children as young as four were tunnels and pulled heavy coal carts.
used in some factories. In mines Little boys cleaned chimneys.
the minimum age was five.
What were conditions like?
Where did they work? Terrible! Factories were often dirty,
Some worked in factories, such as unventilated with no natural light.
textile factories, others in mines, Disease, injuries and mutilation were
gas works, mills, some cleaned common. Dangers in coal mines
chimneys. included landslides, suffocation and
coal inhalation. Chimney sweeps got
How many hours did they work? stuck, burnt or they fell.
They were made to work up
to sixteen hours a day. In 1833, When did child labour stop?
a commission established the A law passed in 1870 said that all
maximum number of hours children between five and ten had to
children in the textile industry attend school but children continued
could work. No children under nine to work for at least another ten years.
could work. Eleven to eighteen
year olds year olds could work
twelve hours, nine to eleven year
olds could work eight hours. In
1842, it was extended to mines. In
1847, the working day was limited
to ten hours.
75
CLIL
Focus on...
History
76
A Stagecoach Setting Out
by John Charles Maggs 1873
77
Test Yourself
Complete the crossword.
1 2
4
5
6 7
9 8
10
Across
3 Where David worked as a child. (9 letters)
4 If your bread is like this, don’t throw it out.
You can feed it to the ducks. (5 letters)
5 Aunt Betsey wore one. (6 letters)
6 Some dogs do this too much. (4 letters)
7 Give a big smile. (4 letters)
8 Mr. Barkis drove one. (4 letters)
10 Uriah Heep was one. (7 letters)
Down
1
People sat in this room in the past. (7 letters)
2 Another way of saying two weeks. (9 letters)
8 Children were punished with this. (4 letters)
9 It’s a good idea to write one in case of death. (4 letters)
78
Syllabus
Topics
Clothes, daily life, work, family, home, emotions, people
Tenses
Present simple, Present continuous
Past simple: finished time
Past continuous: actions in progress at a specific time in past, interrupted
actions
Present perfect simple: indefinite past, unfinished past
Past perfect: narrative
Futures: present continuous, going to, wil
Verb forms
Imperatives
Passives: present, past simple
Gerunds: after verbs, prepositions
Conditional sentences
Type 0, 1 and 2
Reported speech
Statements, questions, commands
Modals
Can, could: ability, permission
May, might: possibility, permission
Must, have to: obligation
Should, ought to: advice
Used to: past habits
Adjectives
Comparative and superlative forms
Adverbs
Regular and irregular forms
79
Teen Readers
Stage 1
Maureen Simpson, In Search of a Missing Friend
Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist
Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales
Janet Borsbey & Ruth Swan, The Boat Race Mystery
Lucy Maud Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables
Mark Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court
Mark Twain, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Angela Tomkinson, Great Friends!
Edith Nesbit, The Railway Children
Eleanor H. Porter, Pollyanna
Anna Sewell, Black Beauty
Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows
Stage 2
Elizabeth Ferretti, Dear Diary…
Angela Tomkinson, Loving London
Mark Twain, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Mary Flagan, The Egyptian Souvenir
Maria Luisa Banfi, A Faraway World
Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden
Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island
Elizabeth Ferretti, Adventure at Haydon Point
William Shakespeare, The Tempest
Angela Tomkinson, Enjoy New York
Frances Hodgson Burnett, Little Lord Fauntleroy
Michael Lacey Freeman, Egghead
Michael Lacey Freeman, Dot to Dot
Silvana Sardi, The Boy with the Red Balloon
Silvana Sardi, Scotland is Magic!
Silvana Sardi, Garpur: My Iceland
Silvana Sardi, Follow your Dreams
Gabriele Rebagliati, Naoko: My Japan
Stage 3
Anna Claudia Ramos, Expedition Brazil
Charles Dickens, David Copperfield
Mary Flagan, Val’s Diary
Maureen Simpson, Destination Karminia
Anonymous, Robin Hood
Jack London, The Call of the Wild
Louisa May Alcott, Little Women
Gordon Gamlin, Allan: My Vancouver