It sounds easy until someone asks you the capital of Canada or how many bones are in your body.
These Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader questions are organized by grade, from 1st grade warm-ups to 5th grade brain-busters, with every answer included. They cover the subjects kids actually study in elementary school: math, science, geography, history, and language arts.
Use them for a family game night, a classroom quiz, a road trip, or a friendly kids versus grown-ups showdown. You will also find a tricky bonus round, a quick-fire subject table, and simple rules for hosting your own version of the game show at home.
Key Takeaways
Questions are grouped from 1st to 5th grade so you can climb the difficulty just like the game show.
Every question has its answer included, so any child can host.
The bonus round includes classic trick questions, like the largest desert being Antarctica.
Kids vs. grown-ups with points by grade level is the easiest way to play at home.
Letting kids write their own questions from what they learned this week doubles as review.
Keep school-night game nights to 30 to 45 minutes so bedtime stays on track.
Table of Contents
1st Grade Questions
Warm-up level. Adults usually sail through these, which makes the later rounds more fun.
How many days are in a week? Answer: 7
What color do you get when you mix blue and yellow? Answer: Green
How many legs does a spider have? Answer: 8
What is 10 minus 4? Answer: 6
What do bees make? Answer: Honey
How many sides does a triangle have? Answer: 3
What season comes after winter? Answer: Spring
What do caterpillars turn into? Answer: Butterflies or moths
What is the opposite of “asleep”? Answer: Awake
How many cents are in a quarter? Answer: 25
2nd Grade Questions
How many continents are there? Answer: 7
What is the capital of the United States? Answer: Washington, D.C.
What is the largest planet in our solar system? Answer: Jupiter
What is 7 plus 8? Answer: 15
What is a baby frog called? Answer: A tadpole
What is the plural of “mouse”? Answer: Mice
How many minutes are in an hour? Answer: 60
How many states are in the United States? Answer: 50
What is water called when it freezes? Answer: Ice
Which gas do we need to breathe in to live? Answer: Oxygen
3rd Grade Questions
What is 6 times 7? Answer: 42
Which planet is known as the Red Planet? Answer: Mars
What are the three common states of matter? Answer: Solid, liquid, and gas
What is the largest ocean on Earth? Answer: The Pacific Ocean
Who was the first president of the United States? Answer: George Washington
What is a noun? Answer: A person, place, thing, or idea
What is half of 50? Answer: 25
What is the closest star to Earth? Answer: The Sun
Which part of a plant takes in water from the soil? Answer: The roots
How many sides does a pentagon have? Answer: 5
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What is the capital of California? Answer: Sacramento
How many sides does a hexagon have? Answer: 6
What is 144 divided by 12? Answer: 12
What is the hardest natural substance on Earth? Answer: Diamond
What are the three main types of rock? Answer: Igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic
What is the process plants use to make food from sunlight? Answer: Photosynthesis
Which U.S. state is the largest by area? Answer: Alaska
How many bones are in the adult human body? Answer: 206
What do you call an animal that eats only plants? Answer: A herbivore
What is the name of the imaginary line that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern Hemispheres? Answer: The equator
5th Grade Questions
This is where most grown-ups start sweating.
What is the chemical formula for water? Answer: H2O
Who was the main author of the Declaration of Independence? Answer: Thomas Jefferson
In what year was the Declaration of Independence adopted? Answer: 1776
What is 3/4 written as a decimal? Answer: 0.75
What is the smallest prime number? Answer: 2
Which planet is closest to the Sun? Answer: Mercury
What are the three branches of the U.S. government? Answer: Legislative, executive, and judicial
What is the volume of a cube with sides 3 inches long? Answer: 27 cubic inches
What is the largest organ of the human body? Answer: The skin
What is the outermost layer of the Earth called? Answer: The crust
At sea level, water boils at how many degrees Fahrenheit? Answer: 212 degrees
How many zeros are in one million? Answer: 6
What is the capital of Canada? Answer: Ottawa
What part of speech describes a noun? Answer: An adjective
Tricky Bonus Questions (the “Million Dollar” Round)
These look easy and trip up almost everyone. Save them for the final round.
What is the largest desert in the world? Answer: Antarctica. A desert is defined by low precipitation, not heat. The Sahara is the largest hot desert.
How many months have 28 days? Answer: All 12 of them
What is the only even prime number? Answer: 2
What is 8 plus 2 times 5? Answer: 18, because multiplication comes before addition
Which is heavier, a pound of feathers or a pound of bricks? Answer: Neither, they both weigh one pound
If you have 3 apples and take away 2, how many apples do you have? Answer: 2, the ones you took
Which ocean lies between Africa and Australia? Answer: The Indian Ocean
What is the tallest mountain on Earth above sea level? Answer: Mount Everest
Mixed Subject Rounds for Game Night
If you would rather play by subject than by grade, reshuffle any of the questions above into categories, or use these quick-fire rounds.
Subject
Question
Answer
Spelling
How do you spell “necessary”?
N-E-C-E-S-S-A-R-Y (one C, two S)
Grammar
Which is correct: “their,” “there,” or “they’re” in “___ going to the park”?
They’re
Math
What is 25 percent of 80?
20
Math
How many inches are in a yard?
36
Science
What force pulls objects toward the center of the Earth?
Gravity
Science
What do you call an animal that is active at night?
Nocturnal
History
Which ship carried the Pilgrims to America in 1620?
The Mayflower
Geography
What is the longest river in Africa?
The Nile
Geography
Which state is known as the Sunshine State?
Florida
Music
How many strings does a standard guitar have?
6
Quick-fire subject round
How to Host an “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader” Game Night
The TV game show, which premiered on Fox in 2007, had adult contestants answer questions drawn from elementary school subjects, from first grade up through fifth, with a real fifth grader standing by to help. You can recreate the fun at home with nothing but this list and a scoreboard.
Make the kids the experts. Let a child be the host and read the questions. Kids love being in charge of the answers.
Climb the grades. Start at 1st grade and work up. Award 1 point for 1st grade, up to 5 points for 5th grade.
Borrow the show’s classmate helps. Give each adult two lifelines: “peek” at a child’s answer, or “copy” it outright.
Mix up the teams. Kids vs. grown-ups is the classic, but mixed teams let younger children contribute.
Make up your own questions. Ask your kids what they learned this week and turn it into a round. It is sneaky homework review.
Keep it kind. Laugh at the grown-ups’ mistakes, not the kids’.
Trivia games turn review into play. Recalling facts in a low-pressure setting strengthens memory, and a round where the grown-ups get something wrong is a great reminder to kids that everyone keeps learning. Quiz nights also give children the experience of being the expert, which builds confidence, and they are an easy screen-free activity for a school night. Keep game night short on school nights, about 30 to 45 minutes, so it does not push back bedtime.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are some Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader questions?
Examples include: What is the largest planet in our solar system? (Jupiter). What is the capital of Canada? (Ottawa). How many bones are in the adult human body? (206). What is 3/4 as a decimal? (0.75). What are the three branches of the U.S. government? (Legislative, executive, and judicial).
What subjects are covered in Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?
The questions come from typical elementary school subjects: math, science, geography, U.S. history, spelling, grammar, and general knowledge, rising in difficulty from 1st grade to 5th grade.
How do you play Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader at home?
Pick a host, split into teams, and ask questions from 1st grade up to 5th grade, awarding more points for higher grades. Give adults a “peek” and a “copy” lifeline to borrow a child’s answer, and finish with a tricky bonus round.
What is a hard 5th grade question?
Questions that trip up adults include: What is the largest desert in the world? (Antarctica). How many months have 28 days? (All 12). What is 8 plus 2 times 5? (18, because you multiply first).
What age is Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader good for?
Kids from about age seven can play, especially as hosts or on mixed teams, and the questions suit players up through middle school and adults. Younger children can join by answering the 1st and 2nd grade rounds.
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