Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? is a game show created by Mark Burnett. It is mostly about challenging ordinary adults through a series of questions taken from the textbooks of 5th grade level students. Read more »

Fox‘s new prime time game show Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader was an almost instant hit benefiting from a hot American Idol lead in and a concept too decadent to resists:  grown ups from various fields and back grounds would go up against 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th grade questions for a chance to win a million dollars.   Joining them are ‘Classmates‘,  normal grade school children who would act as partners for their adult counterpart.    The instant ratings influx for Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader brought the show a lot of attention; and with that, a lot of questions, and now its first scandal. Read more »

After a well received initial run, Fox ordered an additional 13 episodes of the game show Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? The preliminary airing averaged 23 million viewers per episode, garnering a 9.3 scoring from adults 18 to 49. Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? is a show produced by Mark Burnett. Hosted by Jeff Foxworthy, the show features average adults as they attempt to answer a series of questions intended for the fifth-grade level. The questions asked are generally taken from textbooks with subject matters surrounding math, U.S. history and social studies. Each correctly answered question will correspond to a monetary prize, which accumulates as the game goes on. In addition to the adult contestants, five actual fifth graders participate on the show, who serve as the “classmates” of the adult contestants. Read more »

Pretty badly, it would seem.  After premiering to a preposterously large audience in its series debut after American Idol, Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader has since floundered when not immediately preceded by the Biggest Show in the World.  Of course, some drop-off in viewership when Idol isn‘t your lead-in is understandable, but on Thursday Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader clocked  in with its worst ratings yet, with only a third of its premiere audience tuning in. Read more »

“When I look back on all the crap I learned in high school, It‘s a wonder I can think at all...”-Paul SimonAre You Smarter than a Fifth Grader? is another in the long line of hit prime-time game shows that have filled the airwaves recently, a new take on the tried and true trivia show formula.  The premise of the show taps into our fascination with our own collective stupidity.  Perhaps this is a cynical view of the show, but it‘s the reason viewers flocked to its premiere.  People wanted to see grown-ups stumble over fifth-grade level trivia, lacking knowledge they should have but don‘t.  Watching the show, however, it becomes apparent that the real hook of the show is not the idiocy of the contestants (because they are generally competent), but the uselessness of the information we learned back in grade school. Read more »

Originally aired on Thursday, 06/07/2007 Episode Rating: *** (3 star out of 5) Episode Overview: Well, are you?   We test our knowledge alongside three brave adults who attempt to match wits with the young classmates of Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader?  Read more »