Hello and welcome to today's lesson.

My name is Ms. Halliday and I'll be your teacher for today, guiding you through the learning.

It's an absolute pleasure to have you all here and I can't wait to begin discussing "A Christmas Carol" in more depth with you.

So let's get started.

So today's lesson is called "A Christmas Carol": From Dark to Light.

And by the end of today's lesson you'll be able to track light and dark imagery through the novella and explain how it has been used.

Here are some keywords that you'll need for today's lesson.

We've got imagery, melancholy, virtue, to draw parallels, and transformative.

Let's have a look at what some of these keywords mean.

First of all, imagery is visually descriptive language.

So language that allows you to envisage what the writer is intending to show you in your mind's eye.

Melancholy means deeply sad.

A virtue is a behaviour that shows high moral standards.

To draw parallels with something means to make connections with it.

And finally, if something is transformative, it's something that brings about changes, and these changes are usually positive.

I'd like you to keep a lookout for the keywords in today's lesson, and if necessary, keep reminding yourself what their definitions are so that you can access today's learning.

Here's our lesson outline for today.

We're gonna begin by looking at a detailed analysis of an extract, and then we're going to look at tracking light and dark imagery throughout the whole novella.

But let's start first with a detailed analysis of an extract.

So here's our extract.

I'm going to read it and it'll be great if you could be following along.

We will be discussing this extract in a moment, so do make sure that you're following along and paying close attention.

"Scrooge took his melancholy dinner in his usual melancholy tavern; and having read all the newspapers and beguiled the rest of the evening with his banker's-book, went home to bed.

He lived in chambers which had once belonged to his deceased partner.

They were a gloomy suite of rooms in a lowering pile of building up a yard, where it had so little business to be, that one could scarcely help fancying it must have run there when it was a young house, playing at hide-and-seek with other houses, and forgotten the way out again.

It was old enough now, and dreary enough, for nobody lived in it but Scrooge, the other rooms being all let out as offices.

The yard was so dark that even Scrooge, who knew its every stone, was fain to grope with his hands.

The fog and frost so hung about the black old gateway of the house that it seemed as if the Genius of the Weather sat in mournful meditation on the threshold." So there we go, there's our extract, and a fantastic one it is as well.

I love that image of the house running away with the other houses while playing hide-and-seek and forgetting its way out.

I just think that's such a lovely description.

What I'd like you to do with this extract now is highlight the references to darkness or misery.

So what I'm going to invite you to do now is pause the video while you have a go at this activity.

Please feel free to work with a partner if you have somebody else with you.

Otherwise, feel free to work independently.

We'll be sharing ideas in a moment.

So pause the video and off you go.

Fantastic work, and I can see so many of you put some real effort into the first task of the lesson.

That's a great start to today.

So here's what you might have found.

First of all, that word melancholy, one of our key words for today, that means deeply sad.

Now that there is a synonym for misery, which could also be a synonym for darkness, but it's more of that emotional darkness rather than physical darkness.

This word gloomy as well, again, more suggestive of a physical darkness, because gloomy means really dark.

Dreary again means dark, more physically than emotionally.

If something is dreary, it's quite dull, and plain, and dark, and miserable.

And again, Dickens explicitly using that word dark here to describe the setting that Scrooge inhabits.

And again, Dickens using that word grope here to show that the setting is really dark because Scrooge can't find his way, he has to use his hands to guide him.

We have this word black, which again can be used as a synonym for dark.

And this word mournful in mournful meditation, which characterises the setting as very gloomy and miserable.

So well done if you've got any of those ideas, fantastic work.

And what I'd like you to do now is now that we've been through some answers, I'd like you to take each one and think, well, what might the darkness represent in this setting here? And remember that this is an extract from the very beginning of the novella, from stave one.

So at this point in the novella, what might this darkness represent? Again, I'm going to invite you to pause the video while you discuss that, either with people around you or have a think to yourself and maybe jot some ideas down as well in independently.

Off you go.

Fantastic work and some really perceptive and insightful ideas there, excellent.

Before we hear from some of our Oak pupils about what they thought, let's do a quick check for understanding.

Which of the following is not a synonym for dark? So which of the following words does not mean dark and can't be used instead of the word dark? Is it A, gloomy, B, dreary, C, sombre, or D, blackened? Pause the video while you make your answer selection.

And a massive congratulations if you correctly identified C as the correct answer.

You are absolutely right.

Sombre means sad and sorrowful, and therefore it cannot be used as a synonym for dark.

Really well done.

So let's go back and see what our Oak pupils had to say in their discussions.

So first of all, in response to our question of what does that darkness represent, well, Izzy states that actually, "The darkness represents Scrooge's immorality at the beginning of the novella." And it's lovely here to see Izzy really taking into consideration where this extract is from and then using it to try and unpick what she thinks Dickens is trying to tell us.

So I really like the fact that Izzy has, born in mind the fact that this is from stave one, and we know that Scrooge's a really immoral character in stave one, and that Dickens has characterised his setting as dark to represent Scrooge's immorality.

Because we know that a lot of the time Dickens uses his settings to reflect his character's personalities.

And that is actually one of the key reasons that I really love Dickens.

So thank you to Izzy for that fantastic idea.

Now Alex adds to this idea and he says, "The darkness represents Scrooge's unchristian nature", so his lack of Christianity, "At the beginning of the novella." So Alex, again, tying his idea into where this extract is from.

And Alex says that this is because, "He doesn't exhibit Christian virtues like empathy, charity, and kindness." And we know that that's true because Scrooge in stave one is really uncharitable.

He lacks empathy for others and he's very callous and miserly.

So perhaps Dickens has characterised this setting to suggest that Scrooge does not embody these Christian virtues like kindness, charity, and empathy.

So another really fantastic idea from Alex there.

And I love how the students are building on each other's ideas.

It's lovely to see.

And finally, Laura adds, "Well, I think that the darkness symbolises the misery of Scrooge's life and the loss of his childhood innocence and optimism." And isn't that just a fantastic answer? 'Cause I really think it does as well.

And we're going to have a look at how this works in a bit more detail in a moment.

But I love this idea that perhaps we know that Dickens was very concerned with childhood and we know that he felt that children who didn't have innocent and carefree childhoods would grow up to become these very resentful adults.

And perhaps in characterising the setting as dark, Dickens is trying to suggest that that's exactly what happened to Scrooge.

And we know from stave two that that is the experience that Scrooge had in his childhood, and it may be one of the reasons that he does behave so misally in stave one.

So I think that's a really perceptive and insightful point there from Laura.

So well done to our fantastic Oak pupils.

So onto our first task of the lesson, and we're gonna take our Oak pupils ideas.

I'm gonna see if we can evidence them using quotations from the extracts.

So what I'm gonna ask you to do is analyse the extracts, looking specifically for evidence for each pupil's idea, and I've put these on screen for you to remind you.

So this is the same extract that we had earlier.

So we've already read it together and you should be feeling quite confident with it.

And what you are going to do is simply find evidence to support each of the students' opinions and link it to a specific moment in the extract.

You could undertake this task by highlighting the extract, you could write notes in the margin, or you could bullet point notes for each of the students' ideas.

It's up to you how you present it, as long as you have a go, that's all I ask.

So pause the video now and undertake this task.

I'm really looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

Some fantastic work there, and it was lovely to see so many of you taking responsibility for your notes and presenting this in a way that you feel most comfortable with, 'cause after all, they are your notes.

So here's the evidence that Izzy found to support her idea that the darkness represents Scrooge's immorality.

So Izzy like this quotation here, "Scrooge took his melancholy dinner in his usual melancholy tavern." And when Izzy was analysing this, she really liked this use of the word melancholy.

And actually it suggests that Scrooge deliberately surrounds himself with darkness, and that reflects his immorality and his willful ignorance to others, because he willfully isolates himself from his community and he chooses to live this really kind of meagre lifestyle that is dark and miserable.

Izzy also really liked this idea that Dickens uses this repetition of melancholy and this word usual.

And she felt that that could reflect the fact that Scrooge has actually made a real habit of his immorality.

It's become a pattern of behaviour that needs to be broken.

And what I really love about this response from Izzy is the fact that she's put that word pattern in quotation marks, because that's one of the things that Marley says to Scrooge, or Marley's ghost, sorry, says to Scrooge in stave one, he says, "Is this pattern strange to you?" And here this is such a clear link between this moment and the moment where Marley's ghost, you know, says to Scrooge, "Well, you've made a pattern of misdeed and immorality, and therefore yours is a ponderous chain." So I really like here how Izzy's tying in different moments and using quotation marks to show that she's evidencing her ideas and linking to other parts of the text.

Now, in terms of Alex's idea, that the darkness represents screes on Christian nature, well, he likes this quotation here.

"The yard was so dark that even Scrooge, who knew its every stone, was fain to grope with his hands." And I think this is a really interesting quotation, because as Alex points out, Scrooge's dark surroundings could reflect his lack of Christian goodwill and charity.

So again, a similar idea to Izzy's there in this idea that he's surrounded himself with darkness and misery, and that that is a choice that he has made, and that his kind of dismissal of Christian virtues and values is down to pure ignorance.

Alex also really likes this word grope, and he states that, "The fact that Scrooge has to grope with his hands perhaps shows his lack of guidance from God because he has turned his back on religion." So him not being able to see is almost metaphorically him not being able to see the light or him not being in touch or connected with God.

"So without Christine guidance, Scrooge physically and metaphorically struggles to find his way through the darkness of his sin.

And this foreshadows the arrival of Scrooge's spirit guides", in the form of the Ghost of Christmas Passed, Present, and Yet to Come.

And also Molly's ghost actually.

So here we see Scrooge as really needing some guidance, not only physically through his house, but also spiritually and metaphorically through his life and to find kind of the light of God.

So a really, really perceptive idea from Alex again there.

And finally, Laura really likes this quotation here to reinforce her idea that "The darkness symbolises Scrooge's loss of childhood innocence." And she's picked this quote, "It must have run there when it was a young house, playing at hide-and-seek with other houses, and forgotten the way out again." And I'm so glad that someone has chosen my favourite quote from this extract, because I just love this image of the house playing hide-and-seek and just getting lost.

I think it's fantastic.

Now, when Laura was analysing this, she identified Dickens' use of personification as something that interested her.

And she stated that, "Dickens personifies the house to draw parallels between the house and Scrooge, because both of them are presented as having lost their childhood innocence and almost 'forgotten' the way back from the shadows that they've found themselves in." And again, this quotation here links really nicely to Alex's because it reflects this idea of Scrooge having to grope through his house and find his way, and him struggling to find his way, and the fact that he does need that guidance in the same way that this house here has almost forgotten its way.

And secondly, Laura loved, just like me, this image of the hide-and-seek house.

And she states that, "Dickens shows us his fears of a loss of childhood innocence.

And this reflects his concerns that children who witness injustice will grow up to become really immoral and isolated adults." And we see that as a recurring theme throughout the novella.

We see it with Mrs. Dilber, we see it with Ignorance and Want, because this was something that really worried Dickens.

He thought that the key to a happy adulthood was in childhood, was that carefree and innocent childhood.

And in the character of Scrooge, he shows us the consequences of children who are not treated nicely and who are not treated with empathy and kindness.

And he's kind of suggesting that the same has happened with this house.

So here he's really drawing parallels between this young house and Scrooge in his youth.

So some fantastic ideas from our Oak pupils there.

And as always, if you liked any of their ideas, do feel free to steal them and write down for your notes.

So we're on to the second part of the lesson now where we're gonna have a look at tracking light and dark through the novella.

So in the book of John, Jesus says, "I am the light of the world.

Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." And I'd like you to use this quotation now to discuss, well, what does this quotation suggest about Scrooge's transformative journey and what might the spirits be guiding him towards? So as always, if you have somebody to discuss this with, then fantastic, discuss it with someone else.

If you don't feel, free to jot your ideas down or just think about in your head.

I'm invite you now to the video while you think about the two question on screen.

Off you go.

Fantastic discussions.

And let's take some feedback from our lovely Oak pupils.

Starting with Andeep who says that, "This suggests that Scrooge's final destination in his transformative journey might be discovering Christian virtues and values." And Sam adds to this, "Well, the spirits might be guiding him towards the light of God.

He's reestablishing a spiritual connection, not only just with himself, but also with faith more generally." Now, taking these pupil's ideas, I'd like you to discuss, well, how do both these ideas link to the idea of the novella being a Christian parable? And secondly, well, how do these ideas link to the parallels that Dickens draws between Tiny Tim and Christ? Now these are really hard questions, so I would very much encourage you to discuss them if at all possible.

But if you're struggling, just please remember they are hard questions and we will be going through them together.

So I'm gonna invite you now to pause the video while you discuss the questions and before we share ideas.

Thank you very much, let's come back together.

Some really fruitful discussions there.

And before we share some ideas, I just want to quickly check for understanding.

So what do the spirits not guide Scrooge towards? Is it A, embodying Christian values like empathy, charity, and joy? Is it B, understanding the importance of material wealth? Or is it C, establishing a spiritual connection with faith? I'm gonna invite you now to pause the video while you make your answer selection.

And really well done if you selected B.

You're absolutely right, the spirits are absolutely not trying to teach Scrooge the importance of material wealth.

They're actually teaching him the opposite, they're teaching him to value human connection over material wealth.

So well done if you correctly selected answer B, you're right.

So going back to our previous discussion, let's hear some ideas from Izzy and from Alex.

So in terms of the first question of how does Andeep's idea link to this idea that the novella could be a Christian parable? Well, Izzy states that, "A parable is a story told by Jesus, which teaches Christian virtues.

The novella also teaches Christian virtues, so this supports the idea that it's a parable." And actually the novella teaches Christian virtues like charity, and empathy, and equality.

And those are really important humanitarian messages as well as spiritual messages.

But they all reinforce this idea that Dickens is trying to teach us through the form of a parable.

And in response to the second question, which asks us how the pupil's ideas linked to the concept of Tiny Tim perhaps being representative of a Christ figure.

Well, Alex states that, "This links to the quotation from Marley's ghost about him not following 'the blessed Star' to Tiny Tim's door.

As Scrooge's journey leads him to establish a relationship with Tiny Tim, who is compared to Christ in the novella it could be argued that he reestablishes a connection with Christ and Christianity." And that actually reestablishing and kind of taking responsibility for Tiny Tim's life might have been the intended final destination that the spirits had in mind when they started to teach Scrooge this kind of spiritual and moral lesson about kindness, empathy, and joy.

So here Dickens might be further developing this idea that Tiny Tim is representative of a Christ figure, because we know that Tiny Tim is the character that Scrooge makes the biggest difference to.

And actually, it almost seems as if, you know, changing Tiny Tim and the Cratchits life could be the final destination that the spirits had in mind for Scrooge from the very beginning.

And again, Laura adds onto this, "Well, parallels could be drawn between the spirits and wise men, again suggesting that they could be guiding Scrooge towards the light of God." So again, suggesting that this could be a Christian parable 'cause it's teaching Christian virtues and the importance of Christian faith.

So thank you to our Oak pupils for their lovely ideas and let's move on.

So over to you now, and it's time for you to demonstrate what you've learned this lesson.

So I'd like you to use the timeline below to gather quotations from the text that track Dickens' use of dark and light imagery.

And I'd like you to do this so that you can demonstrate Scrooge's moral and spiritual awakening.

So here's your timeline, and here's an example.

In stave one we're told about Bob's "dismal little cell".

Now that word dismal shows the darkness that Scrooge forces Bob to work in, and that represents Scrooge's immoral treatment of others.

So in the very beginning, lots of the settings are very dark because they represent either Scrooge's immorality or the miserable way in which he treats other people.

So what you are going to do now is start looking at the other staves in the novella and finding moments where Dickens uses that dark and light imagery to reflect the stage that Scrooge is at in his transformation.

So you'll need to have your text open, you'll need to be flicking through it, looking for those quotations, and then thinking about what they tell us about Scrooge at that point in the novella.

So pause the video and off you go.

Fantastic work, some very full timelines.

And it was lovely to see so many of you putting little post-it notes in your book, so you could come back to things that you'd found earlier later on in the task.

So that was really conscientious, well done.

So here's what you might have found.

And again, as always, if you've missed anything that you want for your notes, please do feel free to write it down.

So here was our example of the Bob's "dismal little cell", representing Scrooge's immoral treatment of others.

Then in stave two, you might have found this quotation, "Light flashed up in the room", and the spirit, we know, the Ghost of Christmas Passed, "Has a clear bright jet of light on its head." And both of these lights could represent guidance into the light of God or the light of Christian virtues and values.

Now in stave three, we see the spirits of the Ghost of Christmas Present, "Held up its torch high up to shed its light on Scrooge." Now again here parallels could be drawn between the spirit's torch here, which he's holding up really high, and the star of Bethlehem.

And these are both instruments of spiritual guidance.

So here, again, Dickens might be kind of playing into this idea of the text as a Christian parable by drawing those parallels between the star of Bethlehem and the spirit's torch.

Now in stave four, we see that, "The room was very dark, too dark." Now this is the room that Scrooge sees the dead body in, which we know is him, but he obviously doesn't realise it's him at that moment.

And again, the fact that the room is really dark represents the moral darkness that Scrooge will find himself in if he doesn't change his ways.

'Cause remember, the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come shows Scrooge what his future might look like if he doesn't change his ways.

We also see the looters in stave four, and "The looters sit in the scanty light." And again, that shows that they live in moral darkness as well.

So Dickens was really using setting and the darkness or the light of the setting to reflect a character's personality.

And in stave four he extends that to the looters and Mrs. Dilber as well, suggesting that they're really immoral characters as well as Scrooge.

And finally in stave five we see Scrooge waking up on Christmas morning with "No fog, no mist, clear, bright, golden sunlight, heavenly sky, sweet fresh air.

Oh glorious, glorious." And here that heavenly sky in the golden sunlight could represent Scrooge's discovery of the light of God and the true meaning of the word light.

And this is Christian virtue, so kindness, empathy, and charity.

And actually in stave five we really see Scrooge embodying those virtues and values.

So he has metaphorically found the light of God.

And secondly, we know that glorious has really religious connotations and it can mean being close to God or godly.

So the fact that Dickens has used this word twice in the space of, you know, two words could suggest that Scrooge has forged a new relationship with faith and spirituality.

So he has now become close to God.

So I'm sure that you can see from this timeline that Dickens is really cleverly using that dark and light imagery to teach us what stage of his transformation Scrooge is at and show us his journey to the discovery, arguably, of the light of God.

So a massive well done in that task, because it was difficult, but I was really impressed with your resilience and your effort.

Fantastic.

So to summarise the learning from today, well, first of all, we know that Dick uses dark and light imagery throughout the text to reflect Scrooge's transformation.

So in the beginning of the novella, the darkness could reflect Scrooge's immorality, his loss of childhood innocence, or his loss of faith.

The spirits then enlightened Scrooge as to the error of his ways and they guide him towards a more moral future.

And arguably, the spirit's guide Scrooge into the light.

So this could be the light of God and Christianity.

Lastly, arguably again, Dickens' use of dark and light imagery supports the idea that the novella can be read as a Christian parable, because we know that Christian parables taught Christian virtues like kindness, empathy, and charity, and that is exactly what "A Christmas Carol" aims and succeeds at doing.

Thank you very much for coming to today's lesson.

It's been fantastic to share ideas with you and I'm really looking forward to seeing you next time.

Have a lovely rest of your day and I'll see you later, bye.