Greta Thunberg has been in the news a lot of late. Last week she criticised politicians and businessmen for ignoring scientists’ warnings to stop using fossil fuels. But not everybody agrees with her. Donald Trump said, “‘Doom-mongers are the heirs of yesterday’s foolish fortune tellers” and his Treasury secretary said that, “Thunberg should go study economics before offering advice.”
In the face of climate change deniers like these, Greta, an autistic schoolgirl, refuses to give up her fight to save the planet. But she is not the first child to have battled the powers that be in order to change the world.
In this quiz we look at ten children who have changed the world for the better. Some took on the Nazis or other oppressive governments, others campaigned for freedoms we now take for granted. But how many of them do you remember? Have a go at this quiz and let’s see if their names have gone down in history.
1.
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Joan of Arc was a child heroine in medieval France, leading them to victory against the invading English. She was eventually captured and executed on what grounds? |
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[ ] |
She was a traitor |
[ ] |
She was a murderer |
[ ] |
She wore men’s clothes |
[ ] |
She ate meat on a Friday |
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|
2.
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Sophie Scholl was a schoolgirl in Nazi Germany during the 1930s and 40s. She founded a non-violent protest group to denounce Hitler’s movement. What was this group called? |
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[ ] |
The White Rose |
[ ] |
The Red Lion |
[ ] |
The Grey Wolf |
[ ] |
The Black Sheep |
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|
3.
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Anne Frank was a Dutch Jewish girl who hid from the Nazis but was eventually captured and killed. How old was Anne when she died? |
|
[ ] |
15 |
[ ] |
18 |
[ ] |
21 |
[ ] |
24 |
|
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4.
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Ruby Bridges was only 6 years old when she advanced the cause of African Americans in the USA. What did she do? |
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[ ] |
She gave a speech alongside Martin Luther King |
[ ] |
She refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man |
[ ] |
She wrote a letter to the President of the USA, saying that segregation was unfair |
[ ] |
She was the first black child to go to a white-only school in the southern states |
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5.
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In 1982, when she was 10 years old, American schoolgirl Samantha Smith wrote to the leader of the Soviet Union about what? |
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[ ] |
The fall of the Iron Curtain |
[ ] |
Her fear of nuclear war |
[ ] |
The dangers of communism |
[ ] |
The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan |
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|
6.
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Iqbal Masih was a Pakistani campaigner against child labour. He was made to work 120 hours a week, for which he was paid one rupee. How old was Iqbal when he started work? |
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[ ] |
He was 4 |
[ ] |
He was 6 |
[ ] |
He was 8 |
[ ] |
He was 10 |
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7.
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Om Prakash Gurjar also campaigned against child labour, but in which country? |
|
[ ] |
Bangladesh |
[ ] |
The USA |
[ ] |
India |
[ ] |
The UK |
|
|
8.
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Malala Yousafzai campaigned for the right to education for girls in Pakistan. In 2012, when she was 15, she was shot whilst doing what? |
|
[ ] |
Collecting signatures for a petition |
[ ] |
Handing out leaflets |
[ ] |
Giving a speech |
[ ] |
Riding a bus |
|
|
9.
|
Swedish climate change activist Greta Thunberg published her first book in May 2019, when she was 16. What is the book called? |
|
[ ] |
Can You Hear Me? |
[ ] |
No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference |
[ ] |
Our House Is on Fire |
[ ] |
Our Lives Are in Your Hands |
|
|
10.
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Melati and Isabel Wijsen are sisters from Indonesia. They are famous for their campaign against what? |
|
[ ] |
Animal abuse |
[ ] |
Plastic pollution |
[ ] |
Child labour |
[ ] |
Nuclear testing |
|
|
1.
|
Joan of Arc was a child heroine in medieval France, leading them to victory against the invading English. She was eventually captured and executed on what grounds? |
|
[ ] |
She was a traitor |
[ ] |
She was a murderer |
[x] |
She wore men’s clothes |
[ ] |
She ate meat on a Friday |
|
|
2.
|
Sophie Scholl was a schoolgirl in Nazi Germany during the 1930s and 40s. She founded a non-violent protest group to denounce Hitler’s movement. What was this group called? |
|
[x] |
The White Rose |
[ ] |
The Red Lion |
[ ] |
The Grey Wolf |
[ ] |
The Black Sheep |
|
|
3.
|
Anne Frank was a Dutch Jewish girl who hid from the Nazis but was eventually captured and killed. How old was Anne when she died? |
|
[x] |
15 |
[ ] |
18 |
[ ] |
21 |
[ ] |
24 |
|
|
4.
|
Ruby Bridges was only 6 years old when she advanced the cause of African Americans in the USA. What did she do? |
|
[ ] |
She gave a speech alongside Martin Luther King |
[ ] |
She refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man |
[ ] |
She wrote a letter to the President of the USA, saying that segregation was unfair |
[x] |
She was the first black child to go to a white-only school in the southern states |
|
|
5.
|
In 1982, when she was 10 years old, American schoolgirl Samantha Smith wrote to the leader of the Soviet Union about what? |
|
[ ] |
The fall of the Iron Curtain |
[x] |
Her fear of nuclear war |
[ ] |
The dangers of communism |
[ ] |
The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan |
|
|
6.
|
Iqbal Masih was a Pakistani campaigner against child labour. He was made to work 120 hours a week, for which he was paid one rupee. How old was Iqbal when he started work? |
|
[x] |
He was 4 |
[ ] |
He was 6 |
[ ] |
He was 8 |
[ ] |
He was 10 |
|
|
7.
|
Om Prakash Gurjar also campaigned against child labour, but in which country? |
|
[ ] |
Bangladesh |
[ ] |
The USA |
[x] |
India |
[ ] |
The UK |
|
|
8.
|
Malala Yousafzai campaigned for the right to education for girls in Pakistan. In 2012, when she was 15, she was shot whilst doing what? |
|
[ ] |
Collecting signatures for a petition |
[ ] |
Handing out leaflets |
[ ] |
Giving a speech |
[x] |
Riding a bus |
|
|
9.
|
Swedish climate change activist Greta Thunberg published her first book in May 2019, when she was 16. What is the book called? |
|
[ ] |
Can You Hear Me? |
[x] |
No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference |
[ ] |
Our House Is on Fire |
[ ] |
Our Lives Are in Your Hands |
|
|
10.
|
Melati and Isabel Wijsen are sisters from Indonesia. They are famous for their campaign against what? |
|
[ ] |
Animal abuse |
[x] |
Plastic pollution |
[ ] |
Child labour |
[ ] |
Nuclear testing |
|
|