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Child Genius (American TV series)

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Child Genius
GenreReality competition
Presented byLeland Melvin
Narrated byMocean Melvin
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes20
Production
Executive producers
  • Eric Pierce
  • Robert A. Palmer
  • Mary Donahue
  • Laurie Girion
  • Pamela Healey
  • John Hesling
  • David Hillman
  • Eli Lehrer
  • Dan Snook
Running time40 to 43 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkLifetime
ReleaseJanuary 6, 2015 (2015-01-06) –
February 25, 2016 (2016-02-25)

Child Genius is an American reality competition series produced by Shed Media (now Warner Bros. Television UK) along with A&E Networks in cooperation, with American Mensa. It is based on a UK program by the same name.

The show features 20 children between the ages of 8 and 12 from across the country, all competing for a $100,000 college fund and the title of Child Genius 2014.[1] Each week the remaining competitors go head in to head in various mental challenges testing their knowledge of: Math, Spelling, Geography, Memory, the Human Body, U.S. Presidents, Vocabulary, Current Events, Zoology, Astronomy and Space, Inventions, Literature and the Arts, Earth Science and Logic. The competition is moderated by former NASA astronaut Leland D. Melvin, with additional judging provided by North American MENSA representative, Matt Stern, and Jeopardy! champion, Pam Mueller. Challenges took place at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, California, California

The series premiered on January 6, 2015, on Lifetime.[1]

The second season retitled as Child Genius: Battle of the Brightest premiered on January 7, 2016. This season's cast only consisted of 12 geniuses between the ages of 9 and 12. Additionally, Lisa Van Gemert (who was featured during Season 1 for asides) became the new representative for American MENSA, and Dr. Timothy Gunn replaced Pam Mueller as question validator.

Season 1

[edit]

The Geniuses

[edit]
Name Hometown Age IQ Interests
Adi[2] Manhattan Beach, California 12 Reading, Writing, Astrology
Alexa[3] Scottsdale, Arizona 12 157 Mathematics, Coding
Binyamin[4] Orange County, California 12 Top 0.1% Science, Mathematics, Robotics
Christopher[5] LA, California 9 Chemistry, Writing
Eden[6] Washington D.C. 8 Literature, History
Graham[7] Verdigris, Oklahoma 10 Top 0.1% Geography, Hurricanes
Izzy[8] Richmond, Virginia 8 146 Foreign Languages, Mathematics
Jason[9] Furlong, Pennsylvania 10 Top 0.1% Mathematics
Jaxon[10] Mckinney, Texas 12 148 Geology, Mathematics
John[11] Myrtle Beach, South Carolina 9 Top 1% Science
Katherine[12] Rancho Palos Verdes, California 12 140 Music, Anatomy, Literature, Dance
Katie[13] Chatsworth, California 9 146 Science, Music, Drama, Designing
Kellan[14] Redondo Beach, California 12 150 Architecture
Liam[15] Redondo Beach, California 10 142 Art, Spelling
Madison[16] Studio City, California 8 158(highest known IQ in this competition (not including the other IQs that were not specifically given.) Poetry, Chess, Human Antatomy
Robbie[17] LA, California 10 Medicine, Science
Ryan[18] Charlotte, North Carolina 12 156 Mathematics, Music
Tanishq[19] Sacramento, California 10 Top 0.1% Science, Mathematics, Literature
Vanya[20] Olathe, Kansas 12 144 Spelling, Acting, Science, Medicine
Yeji[21] Rolling Hills Estates, California 12 144 Literature, Mathematics

Competitor Progress

[edit]
Elimination Chart
Genius Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 FINALS
Math Geo Total Human

Anatomy

Memory Total Vocabulary Astronomy Total Zoology Spelling Total US

Presidents

Competitors Total Current Events Earth

Science

Total Inventions Literature Arts Total Olympiad Result
Vanya 5 9 14 8 42 50 10 7 17 5 10 15 7 9 16 12 7 19 11 12 23 14 30 WINNER
Yeji ? ? ? 6 ? ? ? ? ? 6 10 16 9 12 21 10 12 22 9 12 21 13 24 Runner - Up
Graham 3 9 12 5 32 37 10 8 18 9 8 17* 11 8 19 9 9 18 9 7 16 9 18 Third Place
Katherine 7 5 12 10 52 62 8 8 16* 9 8 17* 8 10 18 10 15 25 12 8 20 7
Ryan 11 7 18 8 40 48 9 5 14 5 9 14 8 14 22 12 7 19 5 7 12
Binyamin 4 7 11 ? ? ? 4 8 12 6 5 11 7 8 15 7 5 12
Tanishq 4 6 10 10 52 62 10 6 16* 9 8 17* 6 9 15
Jason 6 9 15 6 ? ? ? ? ? 5 8 13 2 8 10
Kellan 6 8 14 4 ? ? ? ? ? 5 1 6
Katie 7 6 13 6 ? ? ? ? ? 1 7 8
Adi 8 7 15 ? 8 ? ? ? ?
Alexa 9 4 13 1 22 23 1 2 3
Jaxon 10 6 16 4 10 14
Robbie 6 7 13 4 13 17
Madison 4 5 9 1 0 1
Izzy 3 5 8
John 2 4 6
Christopher 4 5 9
Eden 2 3 5
Liam 1 4 5
Results
  Limegreen background means the genius won the competition.
  Blue background means the genius made it to the final round of the competition but did not win.
  Gold background means the genius received the highest composite score in that week's competitions.
  Silver background means the genius received the second highest composite score in that week's competitions
  Bronze background means the genius received the third highest composite score in that week's competitions
  Red background means the genius received one of the lowest composite scores and was eliminated from the competition.

Episodes

[edit]
No. Title Original air date U.S. viewers
(millions)
1"I Am Not A Tiger Mommy"January 6, 2015 (2015-01-06)0.41[22]

ROUND 1: Mathematics Each competitor was given two minutes to answer as many mathematics question as they could. Question consisted of adding and multiplying a series of number together (i.e. 526 + 216 + 345). For the first minute competitors were allowed to use a pencil and paper to solve, but for the second minute they could only use their minds.

ROUND 2: Geography Competitors were given 90 seconds to answer as many geography related questions as possible.

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Ryan - 18 (11 Math, 7 Geography)
    • Second Place: Jaxon - 16 (10 Math, 6 Geography)
    • Third Place: Vanya - 14 (5 Math, 9 Geography)
  • Eliminated:
    • Izzy - 8 (3 Math, 5 Geography)
    • John - 6 (2 Math, 4 Geography)
    • Christopher - ? (? Math, 5 Geography)
    • Eden - 5 (2 Math, 3 Geography)
    • Liam - 5 (1 Math, 4 Geography)
2"Please Drink Some Water"January 13, 2015 (2015-01-13)0.26[22]

ROUND 1: Human Anatomy The remaining 15 competitors were given 10 Human Anatomy questions.

ROUND 2: Memory Each competitor was given a full deck of playing cards in a different order. With only one hour to memorize, the competitors had to recite the order of their cards. Once they got one wrong, or could not remember any more cards they were out.

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Katherine - 62 (10 Anatomy, 52 Cards)/Tanish - 62 (10 Anatomy, 52 Cards)
    • Third Place: Vanya - 50 (8 Anatomy, 44 Cards)
  • Eliminated:
    • Jaxon - 14 (4 Anatomy, 10 Memory)
    • Robbie - 17 (4 Anatomy, 13 Memory)
    • Madison - 1 (1 Anatomy, 0 Memory)
3"Focus, Focus, Focus!"January 20, 2015 (2015-01-20)0.30[22]

ROUND 1: Vocabulary The remaining 12 geniuses were given 3 minutes to answer up to ten questions about Vocabulary.

ROUND 2: Astronomy Competitors were given 90 seconds to answer up to 10 questions about Astronomy.

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Graham - 18 (10 Vocabulary, 8 Astronomy)
    • Second Place: Vanya - 17 (10 Vocabulary, 7 Astronomy)
    • Third Place: Katherine - 16 (8 Vocabulary, 8 Astronomy)***Tanishq also received a 16 Composite Score, However, per the rules, a tiebreaker goes to the competitor with the more even spread of scores, which goes to Katherine.
  • Eliminated:
    • Adi - ? (? Vocabulary, ? Astronomy)
    • Alexa - 3 (1 Vocabulary, 2 Astronomy)
4"Triskaidekaphobia"January 27, 2015 (2015-01-27)n/a

ROUND 1: Zoology Competitors were given 90 seconds to answers up to 10 questions about Zoology, such as classification, identification, and anatomy.

ROUND 2: Spelling Competitors were given 10 words to spell.

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Graham - 17 (9 Zoology, 8 Spelling)**Second Place: Tanishq - 17 (9 Zoology, 8 Spelling)**Third Place: Katherine - 17 (9 Zoology, 8 Spelling)***Graham, Tanishq, and Katherine all received the same composite score, as well as the same spread. This led to a secondary tiebreaker which gave the win to whoever had the most correct answers in a row.
  • Eliminated:
    • Katie - 8 (1 Zoology, 7 Spelling)
    • Kellan - 6 (5 Zoology, 1 Spelling)
5"You Signed Up For This"February 3, 2015 (2015-02-03)n/a

ROUND 1: U.S. Presidents Each competitor was given 2 minutes to answer up to 15 questions about the U.S. Presidents

ROUND 2: Logic Competitors were given 5 minutes to solve up to 15 logic problems.

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Ryan - 22 (8 U.S. Presidents, 14 Logic)
    • Second Place: Yeji - 21 (9 U.S. Presidents, 12 Logic)
    • Third Place: Graham - 19 (11 U.S. Presidents, 8 Logic)
  • Eliminated:
    • Tanishq - 15 (6 U.S. Presidents, 9 Logic)
    • Jason - 10 (2 U.S. Presidents, 8 Logic)
6"These Kids Are Like Cheetahs"February 10, 2015 (2015-02-10)n/a

ROUND 1: Current Events The remaining 6 competitors were each given 2 and a half minutes to answer up to 15 questions relating to current world and historical events.

ROUND 2: Earth Sciences Each genius has 2 2 and a half minutes to answer up to 15 questions relating to Earth Sciences (including Biology and Geology)

  • High Scores:
    • Katherine - 25 (10 Current Events, 15 Earth Sciences)
  • Eliminated:
    • Binyamin - 12 (7 Current Events, 5 Earth Sciences)
      • As of this episode there was only one top scorer named, and one competitor eliminated
7"You Need To Stop Lying To Yourself"February 17, 2015 (2015-02-17)0.34[22]

ROUND 1: Inventions The remaining 5 geniuses will have 2 and a half minutes to answer up to 15 questions about technology, inventions, and inventors that have changed society.

ROUND 2: Literature & Arts Competitors are given 2 and a half minutes to answer up to 15 questions about literature, drama, and art.

  • High Scores:
    • Vanya - 23 (11 Inventions, 12 Literature & Arts)
  • Eliminated:
    • Ryan - 12 (5 Inventions, 7 Literature & Arts)
8"We All Want to Win, Right?"February 24, 2015 (2015-02-24)n/a

ROUND 1: Sudden Death The Final Four Competitors each received 5 minutes to answer up to 25 questions ranging from all 14 topics. The finalist with the lowest score after the round would be eliminated.

  • Eliminated:
    • Katherine - 7/25

ROUND 2: Academic Olympiad The remaining 3 geniuses were given 10 minutes to answer up to 50 questions from all 14 subjects covered throughout the competition. The competitor with the most correct answers would be named Child Genius 2015

  • 2nd Runner-Up: Graham - 18/50 $5,000 Academic Scholarship
  • Runner-Up: Yeji 24/50 $10,000 Academic Scholarship
  • CHILD GENIUS 2015: Vanya Shivashankar 30/50 $100,000 Academic Scholarship

Season 2

[edit]

The Geniuses

[edit]
Name Hometown Age IQ Interests
Adrian[23] Peachtree City, Georgia 11 Top 0.1% Music, Science
Arnav[23] Dobbs Ferry, New York 10 145 Mathematics, Literature
Chancellor[23] Stuart, Florida 11 Top 0.1% Computers
Claire[23] Arcadia, California 11 Top 0.1% Mathematics, Science, History
Drake[23] Los Altos Hills, California 11 155 Mathematics, Science
Gianna[23] Denver, Colorado 11 145 Mathematics, Science, Anatomy
Iris[23] San Antonio, Texas 12 144 Writing, Music, Shakespeare, Acting
Jaden[23] Chico, California 12 Top 0.1% Mathematics, Music, Cooking
Jenna[23] San Antonio, Texas 12 162 Literature, Genetics
Sam[23] Sugar Land, Texas 13 152 Mathematics, Science, Languages, Astronomy
Selah[23] Kissimmee, Florida 10 143 Science, Geology, Human Anatomy, chemistry
Vivek[23] Bloomington, Illinois 10 150+ Astrophysics, Science

Competitor Progress

[edit]
Elimination Chart
Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8 Week 9 FINALS
Math Memory Total Spelling Geo Total US

History

Logic Total Current

Events

Human Body Total Literature

Fine Arts

Vocabulary Total Advanced

Math

Speed Memory Total Advanced Spelling World Landmark Total Advanced Logic World History Total Advanced

Science

Specialty

Subject

Total Olympiad Result
Adrian 5 34 39 10 7 17 7 8 15 10 9 19 10 10 20 10 6 16 5 10 15 10 10 20 10 9 19 12:9 30 WINNER
Arnav 9 24 33 9 8 17 9 9 18 9 9 18 10 10 20 10 8 18 5 10 15 9 9 18 9 9 18 16 26 Runner-Up
Claire 6 40 46 10 10 20 5 10 15 9 8 17 10 10 20 10 7 17 6 9 15 4 8 12 8 10 18 12:6
Sam 10 31 41 7 5 13 4 10 14 7 8 15 8 10 18 10 7 17 9 9 18 7 9 16 8 9 17
Vivek 4 17 21 8 9 17 6 9 15 9 9 18 10 10 20 10 6 16 6 10 16 6 5 11
Chancellor 7 52 59 8 4 12 2 9 11 8 9 17 8 7 15 10 7 17 7 5 12
Jaden 7 31 38 8 6 14 3 9 12 10 9 19 10 8 18 9 5 14
Iris 4 11 15 10 1 11 5 5 10 9 9 18 7 7 14
Gianna 10 17 27 1 4 5 4 10 14 6 7 13
Selah 2 7 9 5 1 6 2 6 8
Drake 2 16 18 0 1 1
Jenna 3 n/a n/a E
Results
  Limegreen background means the genius won the competition.
  Blue background means the genius made it to the final round of the competition but did not win.
  Gold background means the genius received the highest composite score in that week's competitions.
  Silver background means the genius received the second highest composite score in that week's competitions
  Bronze background means the genius received the third highest composite score in that week's competitions
  Red background means the genius received one of the lowest composite scores and was eliminated from the competition.

Episodes

[edit]
No. Title Original air date U.S. viewers
(millions)
1 (9)"I'm the Fun Parent"January 7, 2016 (2016-01-07)0.19[24]

It's the first week of the Child Genius competition, and twelve 9–12 year old Child Geniuses, with high achieving, driven parents in tow, prepare to battle it out in this week's rounds--math and memory--all hoping to win a one hundred thousand dollar college fund prize and the title of "Child Genius."

ROUND 1: Mathematics Each competitor has 2 and a half minutes to answer up to 10 mathematics questions (including simple operations and percentages). Players were allowed to use pencil and paper for the first minute, but not the remaining minute and a half.

ROUND 2: Memory Each competitor was given a full deck of playing cards in a different order. With only one hour to memorize, the competitors had to recite the order of their cards. Once they got one wrong, or could not remember any more cards they were out.

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Chancellor (59)
    • Second Place: Claire/Arnav (28)
  • Eliminated:
    • Jenna - n/a
      • Jenna forfeited the Memory round due to a meltdown and chose not to participate in the ceremony, therefore quitting the competition.
2 (10)"Silicon Valley is All About Taking Risks"January 14, 2016 (2016-01-14)TBD

ROUND 1: Spelling Each competitor is given 10 words to spell.

ROUND 2: Geography Each competitor has to answer up to 10 geography related questions.

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Claire - 20
    • Second Place: Arnav/Adrian/Vivek - 17
  • Eliminated:
    • Drake - 1
3 (11)"My Husband is Becoming a Tiger Dad"January 21, 2016 (2016-01-21)TBD

ROUND 1: U.S. History Each competitor has to answer up to 10 questions relating to the history of the United States.

ROUND 2: Logic Each competitor were given to solve 10 logic problems.

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Arnav - 18
    • Second Place: Adrian/Claire/Vivek - 15
  • Eliminated:
    • Selah - 8
4 (12)"Pull Yourself Together"January 28, 2016 (2016-01-28)TBD

ROUND 1: Current Events

ROUND 2: Human Body

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Adrian/Jaden - 19
    • Second Place: Arnav/Iris/Vivek - 18
  • Eliminated: Gianna
5 (13)"Good Is Not Gonna Cut It"February 4, 2016 (2016-02-04)TBD

ROUND 1: Literature and Fine Arts Each competitor are given to answer 10 questions based on arts, literature, and drama.

ROUND 2: Vocabulary Competitors are given 10 vocabulary questions.

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Adrian/Arnav/Claire/Vivek - 20
    • Second Place: Sam/Jaden - 18
  • Eliminated: Iris - 14
6 (14)"This Is an Outrage!"February 11, 2016 (2016-02-11)TBD

ROUND 1: Advanced Math Each competitor is given 10 math problems to solve but at a higher level of complexity.

ROUND 2: Speed Memory

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Arnav - 18
    • Second Place: Claire/Chancellor/Sam - 17
  • Eliminated: Jaden - 14
7 (15)"I Really Seriously Really Wanna Win"February 18, 2016 (2016-02-18)TBD

ROUND 1: Advanced Spelling Each competitor are given ten college-level words to spell to which they spell forwards, backwards, and they will have to unscramble the word on the monitor and spell them.

ROUND 2: World Landmarks

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Sam - 18
    • Second Place: Vivek - 16
  • Eliminated: Chancellor - 12
8 (16)"Mom, You're Confusing Me!"February 25, 2016 (2016-02-25)TBD

ROUND 1: Advanced Logic

ROUND 2: World History

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Adrian - 20
    • Second Place: Arnav - 18
  • Eliminated: Vivek - 11
9 (17)"You'll Be First or Last"March 3, 2016 (2016-03-03)TBD

ROUND 1: Advanced Science

ROUND 2: Specialty Subject Each competitor chose a topic that they knew well.

  • High Scores:
    • First Place: Adrian - 19
    • Second Place: Arnav/Claire - 18
  • Eliminated: Sam - 17

Reception

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "New Reality Series 'Child Genius to Premiere Tuesday, January 6 on Lifetime - TV By The Numbers by zap2it.com". TV By The Numbers by zap2it.com. Archived from the original on 2016-01-25.
  2. ^ "Adi". myLifetime.com.
  3. ^ "Alexa". myLifetime.com.
  4. ^ "Binyamin". myLifetime.com.
  5. ^ "Christopher". myLifetime.com.
  6. ^ "Eden". myLifetime.com.
  7. ^ "Graham". myLifetime.com.
  8. ^ "Izzy". myLifetime.com.
  9. ^ "Jason". myLifetime.com.
  10. ^ "Jaxon". myLifetime.com.
  11. ^ "John". myLifetime.com.
  12. ^ "Katherine". myLifetime.com.
  13. ^ "Katie". myLifetime.com. Archived from the original on 2016-01-27.
  14. ^ "Kellan". myLifetime.com.
  15. ^ "Liam". myLifetime.com.
  16. ^ "Madison". myLifetime.com.
  17. ^ "Robbie". myLifetime.com.
  18. ^ "Ryan". myLifetime.com.
  19. ^ "Tanishq". myLifetime.com.
  20. ^ "Vanya". myLifetime.com.
  21. ^ "Yeji". myLifetime.com.
  22. ^ a b c d "Child Genius ratings - Showbuzz Daily". Showbuzzdaily.com. Archived from the original on 2015-01-09.
  23. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Season 2 Cast". myLifetime.com.
  24. ^ "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Update: 1.7.2016". Showbuzzdaily.com. Archived from the original on 2016-01-10.
[edit]
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