50 GK Questions for Class 6 kids

This is a ready-to-run quiz: five rounds of ten questions on science, geography, history, sports and general topics. Questions come first, and the answer key sits below each round, so the quizmaster can read out the questions while players keep the answers covered.

Scoring that works well with a group of eleven- and twelve-year-olds: one point for the right answer, plus a bonus point if the player can say why it’s right. The answer key gives the reason for every question, so the quizmaster can judge bonus points fairly.

Round 1: Science

1. At what temperature does water boil at sea level?

2. Which is the longest bone in the human body?

3. Which part of a cell is known as its powerhouse?

4. What is the chemical formula of water?

5. Which is the smallest bone in the human body?

6. What is the hardest natural substance on Earth?

7. What is the process by which green plants make their food?

8. Which vitamin does our skin make in sunlight?

9. Which organs filter waste out of the blood?

10. Roughly how fast does light travel?

Answer key

1. 100 °C. On a high mountain the air pressure is lower, so water boils at a lower temperature. That’s why cooking takes longer there.

2. The femur, or thigh bone. It carries most of your weight when you stand.

3. The mitochondria. They release energy from the food we eat, which the cell uses to do its work.

4. H₂O. Each water molecule has two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom.

5. The stapes, in the middle ear. It’s about 3 mm long and passes sound vibrations to the inner ear.

6. Diamond. It’s pure carbon, with its atoms locked in a very tight pattern.

7. Photosynthesis. Plants use sunlight, water and carbon dioxide to make glucose, and they release oxygen.

8. Vitamin D. It helps the body absorb calcium for strong bones.

9. The kidneys. Together they filter all the blood in your body many times a day.

10. About 3,00,000 km per second. Sunlight takes roughly eight minutes to reach Earth.

Round 2: Geography

1. Which river is usually called the longest in the world?

2. Which is the longest river in India?

3. What is the capital of Bangladesh?

4. How many continents are there?

5. Which is the smallest country in the world?

6. In which country is the Great Wall?

7. On which continent is the Sahara Desert?

8. Which country has the largest population?

9. What is the capital of Brazil?

10. Which is the largest ocean?

Answer key

1. The Nile. Some geographers argue the Amazon is slightly longer, depending on where its source is measured from.

2. The Ganga. It flows about 2,500 km from the Gangotri Glacier to the Bay of Bengal.

3. Dhaka

4. Seven: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe and Australia.

5. Vatican City. It sits inside the city of Rome and is smaller than many college campuses.

6. China. It was built and rebuilt over many centuries to protect northern borders.

7. Africa. The desert stretches across about a dozen countries.

8. India. It passed China in 2023, according to UN estimates.

9. Brasília. It was built as a new capital and opened in 1960, replacing Rio de Janeiro.

10. The Pacific Ocean. On its own, it takes up roughly 30 percent of the planet’s surface.

Round 3: History

1. Who was the first Prime Minister of India?

2. Who was the first woman Prime Minister of India?

3. India’s national emblem is taken from which ancient sculpture?

4. Which Mughal emperor built the Taj Mahal?

5. Who was the first President of the United States?

6. Who wrote India’s national anthem?

7. In which year did the Second World War end?

8. In which year did Christopher Columbus first reach the Americas?

9. In which year was the Battle of Plassey fought?

10. Who was the first woman born in India to go to space?

Answer key

1. Jawaharlal Nehru. He served from 1947 until 1964, the longest of any Indian Prime Minister.

2. Indira Gandhi. She was Jawaharlal Nehru’s daughter and first became Prime Minister in 1966.

3. The Lion Capital of Ashoka, from Sarnath. It was carved more than 2,200 years ago.

4. Shah Jahan, in memory of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal.

5. George Washington. He took office in 1789.

6. Rabindranath Tagore. He also wrote Bangladesh’s national anthem.

7. 1945

8. 1492. Textbooks once said Columbus “discovered” America. Millions of people already lived there, so historians now prefer “reached”.

9. 1757. The British East India Company’s victory at Plassey marked the start of its control over Bengal.

10. Kalpana Chawla, who flew on the US space shuttle in 1997.

Round 4: Sports

1. How many players does a cricket team have on the field?

2. Who is known as the God of Cricket?

3. Which tennis tournament is played on grass in London?

4. How many rings are there on the Olympic flag?

5. How many players does each football team have on the field?

6. Who was the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal?

7. In which event did Neeraj Chopra win Olympic gold in Tokyo?

8. Which country hosted the 2023 Men’s Cricket World Cup?

9. What are Canada’s two national sports?

10. What does FIFA stand for?

Answer key

1. Eleven

2. Sachin Tendulkar. He was the first man to score a double century in a one-day international, in 2010.

3. Wimbledon, the oldest tennis tournament in the world, first played in 1877.

4. Five. The rings stand for the five inhabited continents joined together.

5. Eleven, including the goalkeeper. That’s 22 players on the pitch when both teams are counted.

6. Karnam Malleswari. She won bronze in weightlifting at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

7. Javelin throw. It was India’s first Olympic gold in athletics.

8. India

9. Ice hockey (winter) and lacrosse (summer)

10. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. It’s French. In English: International Federation of Association Football.

Round 5: Anything Goes

1. How many days does a leap year have?

2. How many sides does a hexagon have?

3. Who is credited with inventing the telephone?

4. Which planet is called the Red Planet?

5. What is the currency of Japan?

6. What is India’s national bird?

7. Who wrote the Harry Potter books?

8. Which is the fastest land animal?

9. What does ATM stand for?

10. Which country gifted the Statue of Liberty to the United States?

Answer key

1. 366. Earth’s trip around the sun takes about 365¼ days, so an extra day is added every fourth year.

2. Six. Honeybees build hexagonal cells because the shape fits together with no gaps.

3. Alexander Graham Bell. He received the patent in 1876.

4. Mars. Its soil contains iron oxide, which is rust.

5. The yen

6. The peacock

7. J. K. Rowling

8. The cheetah. It can reach about 100 km per hour, but only in short bursts.

9. Automated Teller Machine

10. France. It was given in 1886 to mark friendship between the two countries.

After the Last Round

Ask each player which answer surprised them most. It’s a quick way to find out what actually stuck, and their reasons often turn into the best conversation of the evening.

Giving a reason out loud, under a bit of time pressure, is exactly what the bonus points reward. It’s also what Bambinos’ live public speaking and English classes practise every week, in small groups of kids this age. Book a free trial at bambinos.live.