Reading guide · Goal 7 · Clean Energy
A Furrowed Brow
Ages 6 to 14
A free reading guide for families and teachers: questions by age, vocabulary and activities.
About the story
Watching the clouds from her hideaway, Abril is carried to the window of a girl pressing her forehead against the glass. The girl is Greta, eleven years old, and the story is inspired by Greta Thunberg. Greta hardly says a word. Inside, she is sad and angry: forests are burning, rivers are dying and animals are disappearing, and the people responsible seem to do nothing. Each time something upsets her, her brow furrows, but she keeps her worries to herself, sure that nobody would listen to a girl. Then one evening she finds the lights left on in her father's office, a tap running in the kitchen and a window open while the heating is on, and she cannot hold it in any longer. Her outburst starts a family game with forfeits, a holiday debate about flying and, back at school, a conversation about new dresses for Elisabeth's party. Will Greta's words reach beyond her home and her classroom?
Themes to talk about
- Saving energy at home
- Breaking the silence and sharing your ideas
- Small family habits that add up
- Pollution, travel and buying less
- Greta Thunberg and young people speaking up
Questions to discuss
Ages 6 to 8
- What does Greta find left on or open in her house on the evening she finally speaks?
- What game does Greta's family invent? What happens to anyone who leaves a light on?
- Why does Greta not want to go on holiday by plane? How do they travel instead?
- What happens to Greta's brow when something bothers her? What does your face do when you are cross?
Ages 9 to 11
- Greta's mother says they have always worried about the price of heating. Greta says it is about only using what we really need. What is the difference?
- Greta stays silent for years because she thinks nobody will listen to a girl. What changes her mind?
- Most guests at Elisabeth's party wear a new dress, but a few do not. Why do you think those few listened to Greta?
- Abril thinks, 'If you don't change, everything will stay exactly the same.' Is that true for people as well as stories?
Ages 12 to 14
- Greta says we complain about the world we inherited but behave just like past generations. Do you agree? Give an example.
- Some teachers support Greta's school strike and others think skipping school is wrong. What do you think, and why?
- The epilogue says one in ten people in the world has no access to electricity. How can saving energy in one country connect to people without it in another?
- Find out where the electricity in your home comes from. How much of it is from clean, renewable sources?
Words to learn
- furrowed brow
- A forehead wrinkled into lines because someone is worried, cross or thinking hard.
- climate change
- The long-term warming of the Earth caused mainly by burning coal, oil and gas.
- pollution
- Harmful things such as smoke, gases or rubbish that make air, water or land dirty.
- forfeit
- A small penalty you have to pay or do when you break the rules of a game.
- resources
- Things we need and use, such as water, energy and materials.
- solidarity
- Standing together with other people and supporting them.
- strike
- Refusing to work or attend, as a protest, until something changes.
- carbon emissions
- The carbon dioxide released into the air when fuels are burnt, which warms the planet.
- activist
- Someone who works hard to bring about a change in society.
Activities
20 minutes
The forfeit game
Materials
- A sheet of paper for the rules
- A jar and slips of paper for the forfeits
Steps
- Agree on the rules, as Greta's family does: lights off when you leave a room, taps closed, windows shut when the heating is on.
- Everyone writes a fun forfeit on a slip of paper and puts it in the jar.
- Play for a week. Whoever breaks a rule draws a forfeit.
- At the end of the week, talk about which habits changed and which were hardest.
25 minutes
Energy detectives
Materials
- A clipboard and pencil
- A simple plan of your home or classroom
Steps
- Walk round the room and mark everything that uses electricity or heating.
- Note anything left on with nobody using it, like the lights in Greta's father's office.
- Count how many devices are on standby.
- Make a short checklist of things to switch off before leaving the room.
25 minutes
Plane or train?
Materials
- A map of your country or continent
- Paper and pencil
Steps
- Choose a holiday destination, as Greta's family does before the summer.
- Find out how you could get there by plane, by train and by coach, and how long each takes.
- Talk about why Greta's family chose the train and what they gained from it.
- Decide which journey your group would choose, and why.
The link with SDG 7
Goal 7 aims to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all, and Target 7.3 calls for doubling the rate at which the world improves energy efficiency. A Furrowed Brow starts with lights left on, a running tap and an open window with the heating on, and shows children that using only the energy we really need is the first step towards cleaner energy for everyone.
All about SDG 7: Clean Energy →Frequently asked questions
What age is A Furrowed Brow for?
This guide offers questions for three age bands: 6 to 8, 9 to 11 and 12 to 14. Younger children enjoy the family forfeit game; older readers can discuss school strikes and climate protest.
Which Sustainable Development Goal does A Furrowed Brow cover?
It covers Goal 7, Affordable and Clean Energy, through a story inspired by Greta Thunberg, who begins by challenging the energy her own family wastes at home.
Where can we read A Furrowed Brow?
The full book is in the Eco Heroes library, available to members with a family or school plan. This reading guide is public and can be used by anyone at home or in class.
Read the whole book
“A Furrowed Brow” is in the Eco Heroes library for members with a family or school plan. This guide is public: use it freely at home or in class.