The English Association - over 100 years at the forefront of English

Dickens is my number one novelist. The moment I met him, around the age of fifteen, I fell in love with the vigour, the humour, the volcanic passion, the deep caring for humanity, the overwhelming love of language and the sheer elemental, uninstitutionalised exuberance of the man.

Stewart Ross

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oliver Twist image © 2002, 2007 Marcia Williams

from Oliver Twist and Other Great Dickens Stories

by Marcia Williams. Reproduced by permission of

Walker Books Ltd., London SE11 5HU

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Charles Dickens: Scenes from an Extraordinary Life by Mick Manning and Brita Granström

Image © Mick Manning and Brita Granström 2011. Cover reproduced by permission of Frances Lincoln Publishing

 

To celebrate the bi-centenary of Charles Dickens’ birth in 1812, the Dickens Fellowship and the English Association announce the More Dickens competition, to be first awarded in 2012.

First prize of £500 will be awarded for an extended class project based on one of Dickens’ works. The runner up will receive £250.

 

The competition is open to classes of all ages in primary schools in the UK and can be completed at any time during 2011. Projects may link with regular literacy and numeracy work and include other areas of the curriculum, for example, art, geography, history, music, science. The judges will be looking for originality and lively outcomes, but are also very much interested in hearing about the teaching and learning processes that are part of everyday good practice.

 

As a brilliant storyteller and creator of characters, Dickens lends himself to work on narrative: adventure and mystery stories, historical fiction, dialogue, plays, works by significant authors and the full range of non-fiction writing.

 

Dickens was also a keen sighted social historian and projects might make local links with Dickens, collaborating with regional Dickens Fellowship groups and local libraries.

 

Children involved in the Dickens project should have the opportunity to enjoy some original text by Dickens as well as using drama, film, DVDs, sound recordings and books based on his works to explore the stories.

 

The class might use blogs or journals throughout the project, or make books, newspapers, magazines, podcasts, videos or PowerPoint presentations of their work to share with other classes, their families or the wider school community.

 

Teachers of classes entering the competition will be asked to write a brief outline of their planned project and a final report, including examples of children's work captured in different modes and forms such as sound, images or words All schools entering will receive a copy of one of Dickens’ works and the winner and runner-up will receive cash prizes for the school.

 

Possible starting points

 

Focus on the characters and their lives in Victorian England, perhaps using Marcia Williams’ book Charles Dickens and Friends (Walker Books).

 

Build a project starting with ‘Dickens’ boxes’ created by the children with artefacts and documents associated with one of the stories.

 

Look at parts of Dickens’ A Child’s History of England (edited by Kate Agnew:Wizard Books) comparing his version with documentation and other evidence from the time.

 

Tell the story of one of the books, perhaps from the point of view of the central child character.

 

Investigate key points in Dickens' life and the dress and artefacts used in Victorian times using Mick Manning and Brita Granström's richly illustrated book Charles Dickens: Scenes from an Extraordinary Life (forthcoming from Frances Lincoln).

 

Notes for Guidance and Registration Forms

Also available from the English Association at the address above.

The prize was launched at the British Library in London on 22nd November, 2010 at the 'Hard Expectations or Great Times: Making Sense of Dickens Today' conference, sponsored by the British Library, the Charles Dickens Museum and the English Association.