By: Emily Henley and Erin Shore

Introductory Information
Title of the Book and Authors - A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
Age Range 8-18
Brief Summary of the Book: A Christmas Carol is a story about Ebenezer Scrooge, a greedy and selfish
man who only cares about his money. He is selfish and cares for no one other than himself. Scrooge is
visited by his old business partner, Jacob Marley, who is dead and now a ghost who is not at rest.
Marley warns Scrooge that he will share his fate if he does not change. Scrooge is then visited by
three spirits: the Ghost of Christmas Past, the Ghost of Christmas Present, and the Ghost of Christmas’
Yet to Come. Scrooge takes the gift of the warning of who he will become. He changes his ways and
truly encompasses the true meaning of the Christmas spirit.
CCSS Reading Standards for Literature this Book Talk covers - 2nd grade, we chose these because
this is a 2nd grade Core Knowledge Content piece. We read a condensed version to teach the
theme. This is a book that could be used with all grade levels with scaffolding.
● RL2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to
demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
● RL2.2 Recount stories, including fables and folktales from diverse cultures, and determine their
central message, lesson, or moral.
● RL2.3 Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.
● RL2.5 Describe the overall structure of a story, including describing how the beginning
introduces the story and the ending concludes the action.
● RL2.6 Acknowledge differences in the points of view of characters, including by speaking in a
different voice for each character when reading dialogue aloud.
● RL2.8 Compare and contrast two or more versions of the same story (e.g., Cinderella stories) by
different authors or from different cultures.
● RL2.10 By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories and poetry, in
the grades 2–3 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end
of the range.
● W2.3 Write narratives in which they recount a well elaborated event or short sequence of
events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to
signal event order, and provide a sense of closure.
● SL2.1 Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade 2 topics and
texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups. a. Follow agreed-upon rules for
discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking
one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion). b. Build on others’ talk in
conversations by linking their comments to the remarks of others. c. Ask for clarification and
further explanation as needed about the topics and texts under discussion.
 ● SL2.2 Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read aloud or information presented
orally or through other media.
● SL2.3 Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to clarify comprehension,
gather additional information, or deepen understanding of a topic or issue.
Underlying Message and Theme(s)
● Overall message - In this story, Dickens wanted people to understand that there are
positive qualities in being a kind and generous person. When you’re an angry hateful
person, your life is lonely and without friends.
● Themes in the book - Within this book, Dickens provided three different themes. First is time
and the short lives we live. How our past and present affect our future. The next is Christmas
traditions and the importance of family. He portrays family and traditions with his nephew
and again with Cratchit’s family.
Protagonist and Antagonist
● How you would introduce this idea to your students - I love how the Goldstone’s describe a
protagonist and antagonist. When I introduce this to my students, I will share how they
define the protagonist as the person who is pushing the action/storyline forward. The
antagonist is the person who is holding this person back from moving forward in the story.
With 2nd graders, I could show a road with a car and the car is on their way to work. The
antagonist will be the construction worker who puts in a lane blockage, a school bus that
stops traffic, a police officer pulling someone over, etc. the students will see how they’re a
part of the journey to a destination but preventing the person from moving forward for a
period of time.
● Traits for each - A protagonist and an antagonist can be both positive and negative. An
antagonist, even with holding a storyline back, could still be a good positive person but not
seeing success in the protagonist’s action.
● How they push the action forward or hold it back - In this story, we found two different ways
to view the protagonist and the antagonist.
1st. Scrooge is the protagonist, just living his life. The antagonist belongs to Marley and the 3
ghosts. They’re preventing him from going forward as he is.
2nd. Scrooge is the antagonist, he is holding the story line back and Marley and the 3 ghosts
are the antagonists and they’re trying to help him grow and change, they’re what make the
storyline move forward into a better life. The character at the end becomes a part of the
protagonist.
Key Characters in the Story
1. Jacob Marley
a. What they symbolize
i. Scrooge’s dead business partner
ii. Good man of business
 iii. Ghost with chains, padlocks, ledgers, deeds, heavy purses, and cash boxes due
to a lifetime of being greedy and selfish (page 15)
b. How they change - Marley is known as Scrooge’s business partner who has the same
personality but in the bedroom, he comes back as a ghost to give advice to his friend
to become a better person by introducing the 3 ghosts.
c. Role in the story
i. Shows Scrooge that he will end up
ii. Gives Scrooge a chance to change fates (page 20)
2. Ebenezer Scrooge
a. What they symbolize
i. Dislikes Christmas
ii. Greedy
iii. Loves his money.
iv. Selfish
v. Solitary (page 5)
1. No one wanted to be around him. He liked it that way
vi. cross
b. How they change
i. Scrooge wakes up on Christmas morning and makes amends (page 73).
ii. Donates a turkey to Crachitt, anonymously (page 75)
iii. Goes to nephew Fred’s house for the Christmas party.
iv. Give Cratchit a raise
v. Wants to be a part of Tiny Tim’s life.
vi. Pleasant and good humor (page 76)
vii. Gives Cratchit a raise (page 78)
viii. Becomes like a second father to Tiny TIm (page 79)
c. Role in the story
i. Main character, showing off the theme of kindness and goodness, is the way to
a happy life.
3. Fred
a. What they symbolize
i. Scrooges’ nephew
ii. Family
iii. Cheerful, contagious laugh (page 53)
iv. Says nothing ill against Scrooge (page 53)
v. Feels sorry and has pity for Scrooge (page 54)
b. How they change - no change
c. Role in the story - minor character
i. Shows how Scrooge feels about Christmas (page 7)
4. Bob Cratchit
a. What they symbolize
i. Overworked
ii. Underpaid
b. How they change - Bob’s life outcomes are what changes. He goes from a kind and
happy poor man to a kind and happy man with a good life thanks to Scrooge’s
generosity when he changes.
c. Role in the story - main character to show Scrooge how even with nothing, he is still a
happy man because of the kindness and joy he brings to his life.
5. Ghost of Christmas Past
a. What they symbolize
i. Unearthly visitor (page 25)
ii. Gentle (page 26)
iii. Reminds Scrooge of his innocence.
b. How they change - none
c. Role in the story
i. Cares about Scrooge's welfare
ii. Take heed, a chance for reclamation (page 26)
iii. Shows Scrooge who he once was (page 27)
iv. shows a glimpse of his childhood/ younger self (page 29)
1. Sister comes to get him after convincing father to bring him home. Father
has changed.
2. Scrooge was happy with this memory.
3. Fezziwig
a. Makes Scrooge consider how he treats Bob Cratchit (page 34)
4. Woman- Belle
a. Leaves Scrooge because he has changed because of money.
b. Makes Scrooge not want to see any more of his past (page 38)
v.
6. Ghost of Christmas Present
a. What they symbolize
b. Clear and kind eyes (page 47)
c. Kind and generous
d. Hearty nature and shows sympathy especially to all the poor (page 45)
e. How they change
f. Role in the story
g. Shows Scrooge his fate
h. Shows Scrooge how Cratchit is getting along in life and that of his family
7. Tiny Tim
 a. What they symbolize
i. Ill
ii. Happy
b. How they change
c. Didn’t die (page 79)
d. Role in the story
i. Causes Scrooge to have empathy
8. Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come
a. What they symbolize
b. Gloom and mystery (page 59)
c. Shows fears, wants, and doom (page 58)
i. Show Scrooge a funeral of a man who is disliked.
ii. Uses Scrooges own words and turns them around on him (page 55)
d. How they change
e. Role in the story
f. Shows Scrooge how people feel about his death
i. No one cares, but they will attend his funeral if lunch is provided ((page 61)
ii. Woman is happy because she no longer has debt (page 68)
iii. No emotion but pleasure of his death
Setting
● Time and place
○ London, late 1800’s
● Type—realistic or fantasy
○ realistic
● Why
○ The story is set up as a sequence of dreams or visions. While the dreams themselves
are a fantasy, the possibility of having such dreams is real. The plot of overworked,
underpaid, underappreciated workers and greedy bosses is realistic.
Conflict and Climax
● What is the conflict that leads up to the climax
○ Stave Three, the Ghost of Christmas Present, shows Scrooge Bob Cratchit’s family,
and we are introduced to Tiny Tim. This is the first spark of sympathy that we see from
Scrooge, and we have hope that he can change.
● What is the author's point of view…what is he/she telling the reader
○ Don’t be greedy
○ Show kindness
○ Have empathy
○ Help those less fortunate
○ Spend time with your family
 ○ Money won’t be there to mourn you
● Did the author play fair?
○ I believe they did. The story line is pretty straight forward, you see the characters grow.
Closing
● Discussion of the overall message or themes
○ The overall message of the story is that people can change. When someone truly sees
the errors of their ways and wants to become a better person they can. It is never too
late to become a better person.
● Plot Devices—Grading the Author
○ This story moves along nicely, there are a lot of extra details that can be confusing. The
author is trying to truly paint a picture, but it isn’t always necessary to understand the
story.
● Other things to wrap up the discussion—extensions, final thoughts, etc.
○ Due to this story being written in 1843, the language could cause a barrier in
understanding of the story. There are many modern versions of the story that allow the
story to be well known, yet reading the original story can be challenging.