Activities
Put your wartime knowledge to the test with our collection of interactive puzzles and challenges. Each activity explores different aspects of life during World War II, from secret codes and rationing to the bravery of those who helped Allied servicemen escape to freedom.
All activities can be completed on screen or printed for classroom use. Choose an activity below to get started:
Knowledge Quiz
Test yourself with 18 wartime questions
Wordsearch
Find 12 hidden wartime words in the grid
Crossword
Solve clues about the home front and war effort
Spot the Difference
Find 10 differences in wartime scenes
Knowledge Quiz
Choose the correct answer to move through the quiz. We will let you know straight away if you are right before showing the next question.
Printable quiz (questions and answers)
Printable question sheet
Copy the questions into your exercise book or print this page to complete the quiz offline.
- In what year did Hitler become leader of Germany?
- Who was Britain’s Prime Minister when war was declared between Britain and Germany?
- Which country was second to declare war on Germany?
- What was the name for the German Air Force?
- How was the “V-1” more commonly known?
- True or false – during the air-raids was Buckingham Palace damaged?
- What type of air-raid shelter did you need to dig into your garden?
- Under the rationing rules, socks could be no longer than how many inches?
- Finish this popular phrase – “Make do…”
- How many ration “coupons” did it take to buy a pair of men’s shoes?
- What does W.A.A.F stand for?
- How much sugar could you get under weekly rationing?
- What were all evacuees required to have with them?
- On what date did the blackout start?
- American soldiers were referred to as “GI’s”. What does this stand for?
- Which London landmark became the symbol of the survival of London & Britain?
- Who said “Never was so much owed by so many to so few”?
- Which part of Britain was occupied during WW2?
Answer key
- 1933
- Neville Chamberlain
- France
- The Luftwaffe
- Doodlebug (V-1 flying bomb)
- True – Buckingham Palace was damaged
- An Anderson shelter
- 9½ inches (nine and a half)
- …and mend
- Seven coupons
- Women's Auxiliary Air Force
- 8 ounces (225 grams)
- A gas mask
- 1 September 1939
- Government Issue
- St Paul’s Cathedral
- Winston Churchill
- The Channel Islands
Wordsearch
Keep the button pressed to swap in the answer sheet.
Drag across letters to highlight words. Use undo or clear to start again.
Find twelve wartime words hidden horizontally, vertically and diagonally. Click the puzzle to open a full-size version you can print.
- air force
- army
- navy
- resistance
- spitfire
- escape
- evasion
- evacuee
- gas mask
- rations
- victory
- churchill
Need a hint?
Start with the longer words (such as resistance) and look for their first letter before tracing the rest.
Crossword
Keep the button pressed to swap in the answer grid.
Print the crossword or solve it digitally by opening the larger version. Use the clues below to fill the grid.
Down
- Popular 1940s dance from America.
- Popular British entertainer (also 13 down).
- Name for a woman serving in the Royal Navy.
- Anti-aircraft gun.
Bombing of London and other large British cities ordered by Hitler.
- Month the war started in 1939.
- A woman who was sent to work on a farm.
- Make do and ___.
- Popular British entertainer (see 2 down).
Across
- Describes Germany under the leadership of Hitler.
- Describes children sent to the countryside.
- Type of air-raid shelter.
- ___ for victory.
- A short name for an American soldier.
Where limits were put on items of clothing and food.
First name of the British prime minister at the start of WW2.
The printable puzzle includes a completed answer grid for adult helpers.
Spot the difference
Use your mouse or finger to circle each difference as you find it.
Compare the two pictures carefully and circle ten differences. View the larger image for a printable copy.