A Christmas Carol Unit Study Packet for Kids

A Christmas Carol unit study packet is a printable school day that follows Scrooge from his counting house to Christmas morning, made for December and kids in K to 8. This grade 7 sample has 14 pages plus a parent answer key: math, reading, writing, sudoku, movement, science, coloring and a certificate. About 152 minutes. Free to start.

By Natalie, homeschool mom and Packet Day co-founder

Updated October 2026Reviewed by Natalie

Cover of Elliot's Road to Christmas Morning: Tallow the gray mouse in a top hat and red scarf holding a glowing brass lantern, chips for 6 activities, 152 minutes and grade 7, and Tallow's mission note.

A sample packet made for a grade 7 learner named Elliot

Make your own Christmas Carol packet free

Flip through a full sample packet first →

What is inside a Christmas Carol packet?

A Christmas Carol packet is a full school day on paper: 11 to 17 pages built around A Christmas Carol, roughly 2 to 5 hours with breaks. This sample has 14 pages plus a parent answer key, and Tallow the lantern mouse guides the whole day.

Reading page, Three Spirits and a Lantern: a retelling of A Christmas Carol from Scrooge's counting house and Marley's chains through the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come. — The whole story in about 530 words, with a mouse holding the light.

Writing page, The Day Bob Cratchit Got a Raise: write a scene or diary entry of at least three paragraphs from Bob Cratchit's point of view, with prompts for sensory details, Bob's doubts and a twist starring Tallow. — Seventh grade writing: same story, told from Bob's side of the desk.

Science page, Fog, Smoke, and the Air of Dickens's London: observe the air outside, explain how fog forms, and work out why coal smoke made London's fog darker, thicker and dirtier. — Real outdoor observation, then the science of a pea souper.

Puzzle page, Scrooge's Counting House Sudoku: a 9 by 9 sudoku with 27 starting numbers, a Did You Know that Dickens wrote the book in about six weeks, and a Marley joke. — A full 9 by 9 sudoku for a kid who likes a real challenge.

Movement break, Shake Off Marley's Chains: rattle off the chains, tiptoe silently like the third spirit, booming jumping jacks, a minute of dancing like a guest at Fezziwig's party and a tall Christmas morning stretch. — Even seventh graders like shaking off Marley's chains.

Coloring page, Elliot and Tallow on a Snowy London Street: a boy in a top hat and scarf with Tallow on a cobblestone street, with a lamppost, a holly wreath on the door, wrapped gifts, a lantern and a turkey in a basket. — Detailed line art for an older kid who still likes to color.

Certificate of completion for Elliot's Road to Christmas Morning with Tallow at the top, signature lines for a grown up and the child, and the line Tallow is proud of you, Elliot. — Christmas morning, reached. Tallow is proud.

Free printable: Elliot's Road to Christmas Morning

14 pages, grade 7, answer key included

Want one made for your kid instead? Make one free

What does my child actually do?

Math
Balancing the Books at the Counting House
Two step equations with negatives, a percent and a mean, word problems on ratios, percents and volume, then a bar model for Scrooge's gift to four charity collectors.
Reading
Three Spirits and a Lantern
A retelling of the whole story, Marley to Christmas morning, then six questions on recall, the word neglected, Fezziwig and the silent third spirit.
Writing
The Day Bob Cratchit Got a Raise
A scene or diary entry of at least three paragraphs from Bob's point of view on the morning after Christmas, with sensory details and his doubts.
Puzzle break
Scrooge's Counting House Sudoku
A full 9 by 9 sudoku, with the solution on the parent sheet, plus a Marley joke.
Movement break
Shake Off Marley's Chains
Chain rattles, silent tiptoes, booming jumping jacks, a minute of Fezziwig dancing and a Christmas morning stretch.
Science
Fog, Smoke, and the Air of Dickens's London
Outdoor air observation, how fog forms, fog versus smog, the 1952 London smog and how we keep air cleaner today.

Tallow the lantern mouse, a gray mouse in a black top hat and a red scarf, holding up a glowing brass lantern.

Meet Tallow

Tallow is a small gray mouse in a black top hat and a red scarf, and he never puts down his brass lantern. He is not a character from Dickens. He walks beside Elliot through the fog and lets the real story stay the real story.

He points out Scrooge's counting house in the reading, sets the equations and turns up in the writing prompt, where Elliot gets to bring the lantern mouse into Bob Cratchit's scene.

A seventh grader might roll their eyes at a mouse in a hat. That is fine. Tallow is quiet and a little dry, his lines are short, and he never talks down to an older kid.

What will my child learn?

Your child gets a full grade 7 day: equations, ratios, percents and volume, close reading of a classic, writing from a new point of view, and real environmental science.

The literature stays true to Dickens. Marley has been dead seven years and wears the chain he forged in life. Fezziwig spends a little money and makes everyone feel valued. The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come never speaks.

The science links the story's famous fog to history. London burned huge amounts of coal, and the smoke mixed with fog to make thick, dirty pea soupers. Elliot learns how fog forms, compares fog with smog, and reads about the deadly London smog of December 1952 and the Clean Air Act of 1956 that followed.

Which grades is this for?

Grades K-2

Younger kids get the same Christmas Carol theme with shorter reading, easier words, math at their grade and short writing. Every packet is written new for the grade you choose.

Grades 3-5

Upper elementary kids get Scrooge and the three spirits with reading, vocabulary, math and writing all matched to their level. Each packet is made from scratch for your kid's exact grade.

Grades 6-8

This sample is grade 7, so we can be specific. The retelling runs about 530 words, with six questions from recall to inference. The math covers two step equations with negatives, ratios, percents, a mean and volume. The writing asks for at least three paragraphs from Bob Cratchit's point of view.

A note from Natalie

Our family watches more than one version of A Christmas Carol every year. It starts right after Thanksgiving, and from then on it is nonstop holiday movies at our house.

Sometimes the kids call their dad Scrooge, when Andy gets a little grumpy, like when he breaks an ornament. It always turns around fast, though. A holiday treat, a Christmas movie, everybody bundled up on the couch, and Scrooge is Andy again.

That is really the whole story, isn't it? This packet takes it seriously enough for a middle schooler, with real Dickens, real equations and real science, and it still ends on Christmas morning.

Questions parents ask about Christmas Carol packets

Does my kid need to read the original A Christmas Carol first?

No. The reading is a retelling of the main events, from the counting house to Christmas morning, so your kid can do the whole packet without the novel. The parent note suggests reading Stave One aloud together as an extension. Marley's face on the door knocker alone is worth it.

What does the writing assignment ask for?

A scene or diary entry of at least three paragraphs, told by Bob Cratchit on the morning Scrooge tells him his salary will be raised. Your kid describes the counting house with at least three sensory details, shows whether Bob trusts the change or doubts it, then brings Tallow into the scene for a twist nobody saw coming.

What was a pea souper?

It was the nickname for the thick, yellowish fogs of Victorian London, when coal smoke mixed with natural fog. The worst came much later, in December 1952, when a smog covered London for days and caused thousands of deaths. That disaster led to the Clean Air Act of 1956. The science page walks through all of it.

How hard is the grade 7 math?

It is real grade 7 work. The two step equations include negatives, like negative 3x + 10 = negative 14. There is a percent of a number, a mean, a 3 to 5 ratio problem, a 25 percent tip on a 40 shilling turkey and the volume of a coal box. A bar model at the end builds the equation 4d + 10 = 50.

How did British money work in Dickens's time?

Twelve pence made one shilling, and twenty shillings made one pound, so a pound was worth 240 pence. The math page uses shillings and pounds on purpose, and a Did You Know explains the system. It is a good moment to talk about how Britain finally switched to decimal money in 1971.

Are these made by AI, and are they any good?

Yes, AI writes each packet from scratch for your kid's grade and the theme you choose. We are a homeschool family, we test packets on our own kids, and every sample on this site gets fact checked, this one against the novel itself. They are good and not perfect, so skim the reading first. The answer key does the rest.