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Charles Dickens Facts & Worksheets

Charles Dickens was a 19th century novelist who became famous for his works like A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, and Great Expectations.

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Charles Dickens was a 19th-century novelist who became famous for his works like A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, and Great Expectations. He was a personal favorite of Queen Victoria.

See the fact file below for more information on the Charles Dickens or alternatively, you can download our 21-page Charles Dickens worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

PERSONAL AND EARLY

  • Charles John Huffam Dickens was on February 7, 1812, in Portsmouth, England. He was the second of eight children of John, a naval clerk and Elizabeth Barrow, a teacher.
  • The Dickens lived a thrifty life. By 1816, they moved to Chatham, Kent where Charles explored the countryside.
  • After six years, they moved to Camden Town in London. When he was 12, his father went to prison for debt. As a result, Charles left school and worked in a boot-blacking factory near the River Thames.
  • When his father received a family inheritance, Charles was able to go back to school. However, he was pulled out again when he was 15 and worked as a junior clerk in a law office.
  • At age 20, Dickens decided that he wanted to entertain people for a living. He had always entertained his work colleagues and so joined the Garrick Theatre in London.

LITERARY CAREER

  • By 1833, He decided that he would be a writer. His first story was called ‘A Dinner at Poplar Walk.’ Because of this, Dickens was offered a job at the House of Commons working as a political journalist.
  • In 1836, He landed another new job as editor of a literary magazine. He would write short sketches for the magazine under the pen-name ‘Boz.’ While working for this magazine, Dickens started to write one of his most famous novels, ‘Oliver Twist,’ about a young Victorian boy who is sent to the workhouse.
  • In 1850, Dickens started his own magazine called ‘Household Words.’
  • During his lifetime, Dickens traveled to the United States, Italy, and Switzerland, where he gave talks and wrote more books. Charles Dickens wrote 15 novels and hundreds of short stories and plays in his lifetime. These novels were such a success that he became a Victorian celebrity and people would recognize him on the streets.
  • Dickens was a believer in the paranormal and was a member of The Ghost Club in London. One of his most famous stories, A Christmas Carol, features ghosts as main characters.
  • It is believed that he suffered from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). He was a good friend of Hans Christian Andersen – the fairy tale writer from Denmark.
  • His works included The Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist, The Old Curiosity Shop, A Christmas Carol, Martin Chuzzlewit, The Chimes, Dombey and Son, The Cricket on the Hearth, The Haunted Man, David Copperfield, Bleak House, Hard Times, A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations, Our Mutual Friend, and Edwin Drood.
  • Between 1850 and 1859, Dickens was the publisher, editor, and contributor of the journals Household Words and All the Year Round (1858-1870).

LATER LIFE AND LEGACY

  • In 1863, Dickens’ mother and son, Walter, died in India. The last novel he finished was Our Mutual Friend, completed in 1865.
  • Amidst his failing health, he began writing The Mystery of Edwin Drood, a mystery novel with twelve parts. While working on it, he suffered a stroke and died on June 9, 1870, at his house in London.
  • Dickens was buried in the Poet’s Corner at Westminster Abbey.
  • Many of his works are interpreted in a number of plays, films, and television programs, while copies are still being sold today.
  • In his memory, the Charles Dickens Museum is built in London. Many of his original manuscripts are held at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
  • In celebration of his 202nd birth anniversary, in 2014, a life-size statue was erected in Portsmouth.

Charles Dickens Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle that includes everything you need to know about Charles Dickens across 21 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Charles Dickens worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Charles Dickens who was a 19th-century novelist who became famous for his works like A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, and Great Expectations. He was a personal favorite of Queen Victoria.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Charles Dickens Facts
  • Queen’s Favorite
  • The Dickensian
  • Book Covers
  • Poet’s Corner
  • A Christmas Carol
  • A Tale of Two Cities
  • Greatest Writers of All Time
  • Fact Finder
  • Dickens Says
  • Pen Name

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Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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