Biography of CHarles Dickens

This animation from the BBC charts the highs and lows in the life of John Huffam Dickens.  From visiting his father in debtors' prison, working in a blacking factory, becoming a journalist, having many children and surviving a train crash this biography is a great introducton to one of the world's best known authors.
 
Teaching Ideas
- Note making - we need to develop this skill in children. I allow the children to watch the film individually on laptops, making notes as they go.  I then ask them simple recall questions which they need to answer referring to their notes.
- Children can use their notes to create a quiz for other children to answer. 
- I like to use the Staplehurst rail crash as inspiration to write a newspaper story. There are many more sources relating to the crash only a google search away. 
-A good introduction to Dicken's novels such as Oliver Twist or A Christmas Carol.