Oliver Twist

Use these activities to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity. 

ACTIVITY 1: “Up Next”

Like most of Dickens’s novels, Oliver Twist first appeared in serial form: divided into groupings of one to three chapters that were published in sequential order over more than a year. Each of these groupings resembles an episode of a modern TV show, containing its own miniature climax and conclusion while advancing the overarching storyline. In this activity, you’ll be creating a teaser for one section of the novel.

Part A: Read this brief article from the Dalnavert Museum about serialized novels in 19th-century England. Then review this list of Oliver Twist’s original chapter groupings and choose one for which to create a teaser.

• Consider the chapters that precede the section you’ve chosen (if the serialization break coincides with a shift from one storyline to another, you may also want to refer back to the last section that involves the characters and events within your section). What plot points and themes carry over into your chosen section?
• Next, consider your chosen section, trying to imagine it as a self-contained narrative arc.