Schitalochka

The name comes from a Russian word for the counting rhymes children chant when deciding who is on. Knowing that makes the game easier to place, because what it measures is fluency — how fast you can count and calculate — rather than any deep mathematical understanding.

That distinction matters more than it first appears. Someone who understands the method perfectly well can still answer slowly if they have never practised retrieving results at speed, while someone who has drilled will answer almost before the question finishes. This is training for the second thing, which happens to be the part school rarely has time to rehearse.

Rounds are short and no story interrupts them, so it works in bursts of a few minutes without leaving anything unfinished. It suits primary-school children and equally suits adults who suspect their mental arithmetic has slowed down since they last needed it. On the quiz shelf at My Urban Eatery this is the most straightforward title we have, with nothing dressed up to look like more than it is.