Environmental Quiz for Children: Test Your Knowledge of the Planet

Georgette Kilgore headshot, wearing 8 Billion Trees shirt with forest in the background.Written by Georgette Kilgore

Quizzes Tests | October 3, 2024

Seedlings being water at the Para planting nursery site in Brazil.

The land, trees, plants, animals, water, and air we breathe all make up our environment. Unfortunately, our environment has been getting hurt by human activities, like cutting down trees or dumping waste into landfills.

There are things that you can do to help, though!

Test your knowledge of the environment with these 10 questions, and then take some of our other quizzes to learn more about how you can be a better friend to the environment.

Question 1) Which of these materials cannot be recycled?

Metals
Plastic bottles
Paper and cardboard
Light bulbs
  • Because we can’t separate the materials that make a light bulb, we cannot recycle them. In addition, some light bulbs contain mercury – a heavy (dangerous) metal.1

Question 2) Which of these is a renewable energy resource?Wind turbines on a hill in California.

Coal
Nuclear energy
Natural gas
Wind energy
  • Renewable energy sources are those abundant and continually renovating in nature, like the wind!2

Question 3) Which of the following will help you to save water?

Close taps properly and fix leaking taps, pipes & toilets
Flush the toilet 3 times
Take long showers
Leave the faucet on while you brush your teeth
  • We must make sure there are no leakages in our houses and use as little water as possible: flush only once, take shorter showers, and close the faucet when brushing your teeth!

Question 4) Which is the most eco-friendly mode of transportation?A Delta airlines commercial aircraft landing on the airstrip in front of a forest, with an 8 Billion Trees watermark.

Car
Bike
Bus
Motorcycle
  • Instead of burning fossil fuels that pollute and heat our planet, when we bike we are only burning calories.3

Question 5) Which day is Earth Day?

March 12
October 2
April 22
May 9
  • The Earth Day is a day to remind us of the importance of adopting more eco-friendly lifestyles. Although it is celebrated on April 22nd, Earth Day is actually everyday!4

Question 6) Which of the following is a greenhouse gas?

Carbon Dioxide CO2
Methane CH4
Nitrous Oxide N2O
All of the above
  • All of these gases trap the Sun’s heat in the atmosphere!5

Question 7) Which of these countries emits the most carbon dioxide?

China
Russia
USA
Australia
  • As China is growing fast and burns a lot of coal (a fossil fuel), it produces loads of carbon dioxide.6

Question 8) How long does a Styrofoam cup take to decompose?

50 years
100 years
300 years
500 years
  • Nature cannot degrade Styrofoam quickly and we cannot recycle this material! It is always better to refuse Styrofoam cups!7

Question 9) What is the most common type of trash that litters our oceans?A beach during sunset at the Galapagos Islands, with an 8 Billion Trees watermark.

Cigarettes
Plastic bags
Beverage plastic bottles
Straws/stirrers
  • Humans throw a lot of cigarettes everywhere and these end up in the ocean. In any case, there are loads of plastic bags and bottles, straws, and stirrers in the ocean as well! 8

Question 10) How long does it take for a glass bottle or jar to decompose?

100 years
4,000 years
10,000 years
40,000 years
  • A glass bottle will take 40 centuries to decompose if it isn’t recycled. Recycling a single glass bottle or jar will save enough energy to power a light bulb for four hours.9

Take Another Quiz:

References

1Non-recyclable items – Recycling | UW-La Crosse. (n.d.). Retrieved July 29, 2021, from https://www.uwlax.edu/recycling/what-to-recycle/non-recyclable-items/

2How a wind turbine works. (2021, August 1). Retrieved July 29, 2021, from https://www.energymatters.com.au/components/wind-energy/

3The Costa Rica News Staff. (2018, June 3). The Bicycle: The Most Eco-Friendly Mode of Transportation. Retrieved July 29, 2021, from https://thecostaricanews.com/the-bicycle-the-most-eco-friendly-mode-of-transportation/

4The History of Earth Day | Earth Day. (n.d.). Retrieved July 29, 2021, from https://www.earthday.org/history/

5Main Greenhouse Gases | Center for Climate and Energy Solutions. (2021, January 26). Retrieved July 29, 2021, from https://www.c2es.org/content/main-greenhouse-gases/

6Blokhin, A. (2021, July 26). The 5 Countries That Produce the Most Carbon Dioxide (CO2). Retrieved July 29, 2021, from https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/092915/5-countries-produce-most-carbon-dioxide-co2.asp

7Society of Environmental Journalists. Styrofoam Facts — Why You May Want To Bring Your Own Cup. (2019, April 10). Retrieved July 29, 2021, from https://www.sej.org/publications/backgrounders/styrofoam-facts-why-you-may-want-bring-your-own-cup 

8National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association. What is the most commonly found ocean litter? (2018, October 22). Retrieved July 29, 2021, from https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/most-common-ocean-litter.html 

9Recycling Facts for Kids. (2012, April 24). Retrieved June 8, 2021, from http://www.greenenergysavingtips.com/recycling-facts-for-kids/