The Shabbat Parsha quiz, written by Moshe Werthan, former Chair of the Pardes Board of Directors and alumnus of Pardes 1997-1998, will be appearing on our Web site each week. Moshe began developing these quizzes about six years ago, and found that they brought a lot of fun and excitement to his Shabbat table. Word of Moshe's Shabbat quiz spread around Jerusalem and it became known that if Moshe and Libby Werthan were invited to someone's home for dinner, all invited would be advised to study the Parsha before the meal. The motto at hand: "Moshe has quiz, will travel."

As Moshe advises, teams for the quiz should be organized so that there is a competitive atmosphere, but one in which everyone knows that a good time will be had by all. The more each team complains about which team has the "smart one's" and who got the easy (baby) questions, the better. Somehow, someway, Moshe's quizzes often end up in a tie and everyone feels good about the contribution they were able to make.

Rules for the Shabbat Parasha Quiz - How to Make It Fun!

1. Inform your guests when you invite them that there will be a quiz on the parasha. It is important that they have a chance to prepare if they choose to do so.
2. Divide your guests into two teams arranged so that the members of each team can easily confer on their answer. Try for an even balance of Torah knowledge between the teams.
3. Choose a captain for each team. If there are children present, it is often more fun for them to captain the teams. In general, however, children younger than nine years old are not satisfactory captains.
4. Advise the groups that, while answers are open for discussion, your word is final; what you say is the correct answer is the correct answer. If you fail to establish control at the outset, you can lose the group to arguments.
5. Advise the participants of the scoring system:

   • 1 point for a correct answer
   • Answers to a multi-part question get fractions of a point. E.g., giving one correct answer to a two-part question earns 1/2 point
6. Only the team addressed is allowed to answer the question! Make it clear that the opposing team will be penalized one point every time they answer the other team's question.
7. Make it fun. The person giving the quiz should be lenient with the answers. In other words, you may feel that an answer different from the one you have is acceptable. Give the point, but understand that the opposing team may be disposed to argue, so be sure the answer is correct.
8. Have your Chumash on hand for ready reference, but try to avoid using it. It is important to keep the quiz moving.