HistoryFreePrintable

World War 2 Roleplay

A free history worksheet ready for your classroom. Open in Kuraplan to grab the print-ready PDF, customize it for your students, or generate a fresh version in seconds.

Download now

Name:Date:

World War 2 Roleplay

It is 1941 in Britain. Prepare a short, historically informed role-play as a child evacuee. Use the evidence and facts on this sheet. Show empathy: do not treat people’s fear or loss as a joke. You may invent your character’s name and feelings, but keep historical details accurate.

Historical briefing: leaving home

During the Second World War, German air raids threatened many British towns and cities. From 1939, the government organised the evacuation of children from places considered at risk to safer areas, often in the countryside. Children travelled by train, sometimes carrying a small case and a gas mask. They might wear a label showing their name and destination. Hosts welcomed some children; others felt lonely or unsettled. Siblings could be sent to different homes. Evacuation did not mean every child had the same experience. Food was rationed in Britain from 1940. Each person had a ration book and could buy limited amounts of certain foods. Rationing aimed to share supplies fairly. Everyday life also included school, chores, making new friends and hearing news about the war.

Build your character

Create a fictional evacuee. Choose a name and age, then use the historical briefing to shape a believable point of view.

1.Which statement best explains why many children were evacuated from cities during the war?

To protect them from the danger of air raids
To give every child a holiday in the countryside
To send children away from school permanently
To make sure families lived apart

2.Name two things a child might take or wear when leaving for evacuation, according to the briefing.

3.True or false? Every evacuated child had exactly the same experience in the countryside. Explain your answer using one detail from the briefing.

4.What was rationing, and what was one reason it was used in Britain?

5.Imagine your character has just arrived at a country station. Write two different feelings they might have and give a reason for each. Use ‘might’ because people respond differently.

6.Choose the most historically careful line for an evacuee character to say.

“Every evacuee was unhappy, and every host was unkind.”
“I have come to stay somewhere safer, but I do not yet know what it will be like.”
“The government promised the war would end tomorrow.”
“We all travelled by aeroplane with large suitcases.”

7.Complete the sentence with a historical detail: “My family packed my , and I am travelling to .”

8.Write a short first-person monologue of 4–6 sentences for your fictional evacuee. Include one accurate historical detail, one feeling with a reason, and one question or hope about the future.

9.A partner says, “All evacuees were sent alone and none could contact their families.” Use the briefing to correct both parts of this claim as carefully as you can.

10.Before performing, check your role-play: name one fact you included and one way you showed respect for people’s different wartime experiences.