1. Charles did it again!

2. My first day in/at/on... (new) school job England conference car
restaurant
plane
airport…

3. Your first day in kindergarten…?
Yes, it’s me…
Do you remember any detail(s) about your kindergarten?
Did you learn ‘four magic words’?
Write them down on papers!
I hope it wasn’t like this… 3

4. rubbers seesaw bib crayons corduroy overalls chalk
Match!
rubbers
seesaw
bib
crayons
corduroy overalls
chalk 4

5. Short story… Shirley Jackson (1916 – 1965) was an
influential American author.
She has even influenced Stephen King.
She is best known for the short story "The Lottery" (1948), which suggests a secret, dark side of small-town America.
'Charles' is a short story about a boy Laurie
who starts kindergarten and meets a new
friend, Charles.
Let’s read the first four parts of the story… 5

6. Vocabulary Odd the one out! Two words are synonyms, one is not!
renounce resign, give up, accept
swaggering intimidating, easygoing, bullying
slam pamper, bang, smash
vain conceited, reliable, egotistic
casual nonchalant, earnest, usual
regard gaze, search, pay attention to
address talk to, guess, target
spank cuddle, hit, beat
mindful aware, forgotten, cognizant

7. While reading “…He began to laugh insanely.”
Write your opinion of Laurie at this point (20-40 words).
Give evidence from the text to support this opinion (mark it)
Write a vocabulary list word to describe Charles (3).
Write a word of your own to describe him. (2)
Give evidence from the text that supports your choice of words (mark it)
Underline any (extra) new vocabulary

8. In groups... Who is narrating (telling) the short story Charles?
According to the narrator, how did Laurie change when he started kindergarten?
When was Charles first mentioned in Laurie’s home? Explain what he had done.
Explain how Charles became a household joke at Laurie’s home.
Why were Laurie’s parents looking forward to meeting his kindergarten teacher?

9. PTA
“Monday night was the first Parent-Teachers meeting, and only the fact that the baby had a cold kept me from going; I wanted passionately to meet Charles’s mother.”
What do you think will happen at the PTA meeting?
Why is Charles rude?
What will his Mum say at the PTA meeting?
What could be the problems in Charles’ family?
(discussion & writing in small groups)

10. Charles, Part 5. (End) “If only she’s there.” I said prayerfully.
“She’ll be there,” my husband said. “I don’t see how they could hold a PTA meeting without Charles’s mother.”
At the meeting I sat restlessly, scanning each face, trying to guess which one hid the secret of Charles. None of them looked to me scary enough. No one stood up in the meeting and apologized for the way her son had been acting. No one mentioned Charles.

11. Charles, Part 5. (End)
After the meeting I identified and looked for Laurie’s kindergarten teacher. She had a plate with a cup of tea and a piece of chocolate cake; I had a plate with a cup of tea and a piece of marshmallow cake.
We came up to one another carefully, and smiled.

12. Charles, Part 5 (End)
“I’ve been so anxious to meet you,” I said. “I’m Laurie’s mother.”
“We’re all so interested in Laurie,” she said.
“Well, he certainly likes kindergarten,” I said. “He talks about it all the time.”
“We had a little trouble adjusting, the first week or so,” she said slowly, “but now he’s a fine helper. With occasional lapses32, of course.”
“Laurie usually adjusts very quickly,” I said. “I guess this time it’s Charles’s influence.”
“Charles?”
“Yes,” I said, laughing, “you must have your hands full in that kindergarten, with Charles.”

13. “We don’t have any Charles
The End…
“Charles?” she said.
“We don’t have any Charles
in the kindergarten.”
Discuss.

14. Acting?
Reading: roleplay
Mum
Teacher
Dad
Laurie
+ narrator

15. Comprehension questions (plot)
What changes does Laurie's mother observe in her son the day he starts kindergarten?
What does Laurie report about Charles in the following two weeks? How do Laurie's parents respond to these reports? How does Charles influence life in Laurie's family?
In what way does Charles' behaviour change during the third and fourth week? How do Laurie's parents interpret this change?
How does Charles behave shortly before the second PTA meeting? What course does the second PTA meeting take for Laurie's mother?

16. Vocabulary Match! toughness destined awed frightened
reformation gesticulate (shoulders)
unsettling distribute
bound to administer
shrug shift
deal with connive
to plot huskiness
hand out rattling

17. Trust me! It’s a word!
Rearrange the letters to get a synonym:
mud merig
mop opsegn
dumb llud
abandon vieg pu
demand kas
cord irngts
pound thi

18. Vocabulary Using the word in the bracket, create a synonym:
joyfully (glee)
cynically (mock)
solemnly (sincere)
anxiously (queasy)
reassuringly (tranquil)
warily (watchful)
simultaneously (synchronously)
insanely (mad)

19. Humour and Irony Charles’ identity Who is Charles? — How do you know?
2. The narrator's perspective
When did Laurie's mother realize?
3. The reader's perspective
When did you realize Laurie was not telling the whole truth?
4. Dramatic irony
How did your knowledge affect your enjoyment of the story?
5. Surface humour
What else is funny about the story?

20. Reader's sympathies
1.Which character do you sympathize with (laugh at) most? Why?
Try to explain why Laurie/Charles behaved as he did.
2. Parental attitudes
What do you think of the way the parents deal with
Laurie?

21. Summarizing using… key words (kindergarten, boy, yelling, fresh...)
key ‘events’ by day
key quotes
gapped summary

22. Fill in and summarize! returns/reverts adjusting/accommodating
lapses/mistakes harasses/molests
eventually/consequently yells/shouts
mischief/misbehaviour shock/surprise
Little Laurie, who has just started kindergarten, keeps his parents in suspense with more or less shocking stories about his fellow-pupil Charles, who 1________________ his teacher and classmates with his aggressive behaviour. Charles, for instance, hits the teacher, keeps pounding his feet on the floor during storytime, or 2_____________________ in class during story hour. Punishment obviously has little effect on him.
Fearing that "all this toughness" may have a "bad influence" on Laurie, his mother "passionately" wishes to contact Charles' mother at the first Parent- Teachers meeting, but her plan comes to nothing because her baby's cold keeps her from going.
3__________________, Laurie's daily reports about Charles begin to dominate both parents' consciousness. By the third week of kindergarten "Charles" has become a synonym for any kind of 4_________________ or damage done within the family. After what seems a time of reformation in Charles when his teacher calls him her "helper", Charles 5____________________ to his usual misbehaviour.

23. Fill in and summarize! harasses/molests returns/reverts
adjusting/accommodating lapses/mistakes
eventually/consequently yells/shouts
mischief/misbehaviour shock/surprise
Among other things, he makes a little girl say an evil word and later says it himself "three or four times". Anxiously, Laurie's mother attends the second Parent-Teachers meeting where no one, however, mentions Charles.
When she approaches the teacher after the meeting and introduces herself as Laurie's mother, she is informed primly that her little son had "a little trouble 6_________________________, the first week or so", but now has become "a fine little helper. With occasional lapses, of course".
Innocently, Laurie's mother tries to attribute her son's 7______________________ to "Charles' influence", but the teacher informs her that they "don't have any Charles in the kindergarten". It is only at this point that she realizes that Laurie has been describing his own behaviour at school. One can only imagine her 8___________ on realizing that she herself is "Charles' mother".

24. Group work
Group A:
Have a second close reading of the story. - Note down in brief, following the chronological order, all the information you get about Charles' behaviour and about his teacher's corresponding reactions. Enter your findings into a chart, as follows:

25. Group work
Group B:
Work through the text and note down all relevant information on Laurie's
behaviour in outline form (entering the details into a similar chart).
First Week:
Laurie starts wearing blue jeans.
He goes off to kindergarten without waving goodbye.
On returning, he shouts and slams the door, [etc.]
Group C:
Summarize the corresponding reactions of Laurie's parents (entering the details into a similar chart).
Laurie's mother notices that an era of her life has come to an end.
She tries to react casually.
Laurie's father asks what he learned at school, [etc.]

26. Homework! Free choice… A
Write a paragraph that explains how Charles’ behaviour at school is similar to Laurie’s behaviour at home.
Use specific details and examples from the story to support your point.
If you use direct excerpts from the story, put quotations marks around the text and write the page number in parenthesis after it. B
What lesson do you think the narrator learns about her son? Use specific examples from story to support your point of view.

27. A book jacket
You will create a book jacket (front and back page) for the short story Charles. You are given the paper which will serve as a jacket.
Use information (from the paper with story) about the book and the author but DO NOT USE THE SAME WORDS.
Divide your work wisely between all group members
(eg. one writes the text for back cover, other one inside back cover flap, third copies everything or illustrateses).
Publisher, place of publication, name of your group, ISBN and bar code is to be chosen by you (use your imagination!).
Be careful, you have 20 minutes to do this part, so cooperate and do not let one person do all the work.

28. A book jacket

29. ~Lily Tomlin as "Edith Ann“
Playing with technology (.ppt or video)
Anything in common?
I like a teacher who gives you something to take home to think about besides homework. 
~Lily Tomlin as "Edith Ann“

30. References, materials used:
Shirley Jackson, Charles
Franz Ludescher CHARLES by Shirley Jackson\374
Alanis Morisette, song Ironic
Web resources for songs and lyrics =
me for full list of web links!

31. Thank you for your attention! E-mail: anitakuduz@gmail.com
Anita Jokić, prof.
Prva riječka hrvatska gimnazija mob