(CNN) Thousands of Australian children skipped school on Friday in defiance of the prime minister to protest for greater action on climate change.

Organizers estimated around 15,000 left their classrooms in 30 locations across the country, including Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth, carrying signs reading "procrastinating is our job not yours" and "I've seen smarter Cabinets at Ikea".

Friday's protests followed similar protests in Canberra and Hobart earlier this week.

As the children prepared for three days of protest, Prime Minister Scott Morrison told Parliament "what we want is more learning in schools and less activism."

This rally has the best signs of all time 😂 #ClimateStrike #auspol pic.twitter.com/OiadhbiXwf — Mehreen Faruqi (@MehreenFaruqi) November 30, 2018

Two Central Victoria pupils, inspired by Greta Thunberg, a 15-year-old student in Sweden who staged her own climate strike outside the Swedish Parliament in September, started the "Strike 4 Climate Action."

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