Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?

:"For information related to a version of "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?" airing in a specific country, see International versions below."

"Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?" is a television game show format based on asking grade-school level questions to adults. The show first aired on FOX in the United States on February 27, 2007. The format originally appeared in the United States on the "Howard Stern Show" [ [http://www.howardstern.com/rundown.hs?d=1172552400 Wrong, wrong, wrong - The Howard Stern Show ] ] [ [http://www.howardstern.com/rundown.hs?d=1211342400 Daddy lange? - The Howard Stern Show ] ] , where Stern would pit adults against children to test their intelligence whilst making the adult look stupid. The show has since been replicated in several countries; some under the same title, and some under modified titles. The first season of the show ranked 28th in the Nielsen Ratings, with an average of 12.7 million viewers per episode. [ [http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/features/e3ifbfdd1bcb53266ad8d9a71cad261604f 2006-07 primetime wrap] ] Stern has gone on to report that the creation of the show was done without any mention to him and that he has received no royalties since its debut.

Gameplay

Each game is played by a single contestant who earns money incrementally based on a payout ladder by answering simple trivia questions, with the game themed as a school quiz. The game relies on the fact that an adult would not know the information generally taught in elementary grade school, due to the fact it is rarely used in adult life. The show also derives its humor by occasionally displaying the contestant's educational attainment, implying that in spite of that, they struggle to answer some questions.

The contestant is presented and chooses from a set of ten subject and grade level question topics. The question is then revealed. Some questions are multiple choice or true/false; others require the contestant to answer without any options.

Each correct answer moves the contestant up a payout ladder with a final bonus fifth grade question moving the contestant up one more step to the top prize. At any point up to the final question, the contestant may quit the game after seeing the question. For the final question, the contestant must decide whether to quit after seeing only the subject; if he chooses to see the question, he must answer it.There are five "classmates" in the game of approximately fifth-grade age who also answer each question in secret by writing their answers. These answers are sometimes used to create tension when the classmates answers do not correlate with the contestant's. Additionally, the contestant selects one of the classmates at the beginning of the game to help them during the game. Each classmate can only help for two questions, and then a new classmate must be selected.

The selected classmate provides the contestant with two "cheats", each of which may only be used once. The contestant may choose to "peek" at the classmate's paper, which allows them to see the classmate's answer before they give their own (once the peek is used the contestant must answer the question); the contestant may "copy" the classmate, which automatically locks the classmate's answer in as their own. In addition, the contestant has one "save" which comes into play after the contestant gives their first wrong answer. If the classmate has written the "correct" answer, he saves the contestant; otherwise, the game ends and the contestant loses the game and wins nothing, unless he correctly answers five questions, at which point he is guaranteed the fifth level of the payout ladder. The cheats are not available on the final question;cite episode
title=Episode AYS-109
series=Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader
network=Fox Broadcasting Company
airdate=2007-04-19
season=1
number=09] additionally, once all three cheats are used, the chosen classmate returns to the group and no new classmate is selected. The classmates continue to write answers for the questions, however, to be used for tension.

The classmates are generally the same throughout the season, and are given a "study guide" of possible question topics before the start of the season [ [http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2007/apr/24/the-new-kid/ Camarillo fifth-grader joins class on 'Smarter' game show : Lifestyle : Ventura County Star ] ] . Since the classmates are not in an adversarial role with the contestants, this only serves to help the contestants if they use the "cheats." It does, however, give a misleading impression of the knowledge level of actual fifth-graders, since the classmates on the show rarely miss the questions having been given study material in advance. In fact, the show's title is something of a misnomer, since contestants do not actually compete against the classmates, and the classmates' performance on the show is enhanced by study materials.

Upon leaving the game either by quitting ("DROP OUT"), or answering incorrectly ("FLUNK OUT"), the contestant must profess to the camera, "I am not smarter than a fifth grader." Although if the million dollar question is answered correctly, the contestant has the opportunity to claim, "I am smarter than a fifth grader."

International versions

The show has spawned many versions around the world:

References