From in-class spelling tests to school-wide bees, one student from each Westerville middle school proved to be the top speller and will represent their building and the Westerville City School District (WCSD) at the regional Scripps Spelling Bee. Middle school champions are:
- Finn Tan (Blendon), grade 7;
- Ema Rennie (Genoa), grade 8;
- Catherine Adams (Heritage), grade 7; and
- Muna Ali (Walnut Springs), grade 7.
Each of the four student representatives received, from Encyclopedia Britannica, a free one-year subscription to Britannica Online for Kids (a $69.95 value). Next, they took a Scripp’s 50-word online written test and earned an invitation to the Regional Bee at Ohio University on March 19. Winners from that event will head to the National Scripps Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C. at the end of May.
Co-facilitated by the WCSD Gifted Education Department and language art teachers, the purpose of spelling bees are to help students improve spelling, increase vocabulary, learn concepts, and hone English skills.
Scripps (www.spellingbee.com) is the nation’s largest and longest-running spelling be administered on a not-for-profit basis by The E.W. Scripps Company. Scripps Spelling Bees are sponsored in the United States, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Department of Defense Schools in Europe, as well as the Bahamas, China, Ghana, Jamaica, Japan and South Korea.