Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – It was a battle of the ages as Columbus 5th grade students challenged city leaders to an academic sparring match.

“Yes, I sure hope so,” said Columbus Municipal School Board President Jason Spears.

“It’s been a long time since I was a 5th grader,” said District Attorney Scott Colom.

Modeled after the popular TV show, 5th graders selected community leaders to join them for; food, fun, and a test of the mind.

“I’ve been trying to study for a while. I’ve been looking up words and watching videos trying to see what’s going to go on,” said 5th Grade Student Damion Radney.

“We studied more, I personally just looked up a lot of things on the internet and memorized them in my mind,””said 5th Grade Student Bailey Washington.

Contestants had to answer questions straight from an elementary school curriculum.

Spears says he had to brush up on a few things.

“For me, it’s just about reviewing some principle things that you just kind of, over time, forget about. I’m a pretty big history buff. I feel pretty secure in History and Social Studies things of that nature. Mathematics was something else, I had to go back and look at a few times,” said Spears.

Friday’s event was hosted by the Parent Teacher Organization; designed to highlight student’s good behavior throughout the year.

Principal Kimberly Blunt says this is a great way for the students to showcase their hard work while also building community relations.

“Here at Sale, we often try and bring the real world into our school. It really does help and benefit the children to have them competing against community members. It also lets them know the people in our city support our school as well,” said Blunt.

Though this is the first year, Colom says he hopes to match wits with students again.

“It shows them positive role models. It shows them that we care about them and their futures. I’m always here to help the schools with whatever I can because I know how important they are,” said Colom.

‘Are you smarter than a 5th grader’ is just one of the many events the school holds under it’s Positive Behavior Intervention Support Program.

Friday’s competition came out to a tie.