Once again this year, Virginia Media and WHRO Public Media are proud to sponsor the regional competition for the Scripps National Spelling Bee. But before any student can get there, they have to win their school's spelling bee and then compete in our regional competition in February!
Is your school participating? It's not too late for schools to enroll.
This year, the regional spelling bee is set to take place on February 13, 2021. The champion of our local competition will represent our region in the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee. Prizes for our area’s top speller will include an expenses-paid trip to the national competition.
Visit the SpellingBee website and encourage your school to sign up. The deadline to enroll your school is December 20.
Details For Your School:
Whether your students are learning in the classroom or remotely, the new online testing platform will allow you to conduct classroom- and school-level competitions via a virtual spelling exam. For many schools, this virtual tool could make the spelling bee one of few extracurricular programs available to their students this year. No matter how a school chooses to determine its spelling bee champion, all champions from enrolled schools will move forward in the Virginia Media/WHRO Public Media local area program.
When you enroll at spellingbee.com and pay the enrollment fee of $175, you will receive exclusive online access to:
• Word lists and study lists for grades 1-8, • The 2021 Classroom Pronouncer Guide for administering classroom spelling bees, • The 2021 School Pronouncer Guide for administering a school spelling bee, • The Bee's new online testing platform, • Words of the Champions, the 4,000-word study resource for your school spelling bee champion, • The Great Words, Great Works reading list with all source books for the School Spelling Bee Study List, organized by grade level, • Supplemental vocabulary materials for classroom and school levels, • Award certificates for participants and your school champion, and • Key information about the Virginia Media/WHRO Public Media spelling bee program.
We are proud to continue offering the Bee program in a time when many student recognition opportunities are on hold, and we look forward to providing this wonderful opportunity to your students.
The deadline to enroll your school is December 20.
A Few Fun Facts:
- The National Spelling Bee began in 1925 when nine newspapers joined together to host a spelling bee. Little did they know that 90 years later their literacy effort would reach 11 million students each year.
- Eight spellers conquered eight championship words to make history in 2019. What were they? Auslaut. Erysipelas. Bougainvillea. Aiguillette. Pendeloque. Palama. Cernuous. Odylic.
- The French word connoisseur has been the most frequently used word on Scripps National Spelling Bee word lists.
- There was no Scripps National Spelling Bee from 1943-1945. It was called off due to World War II.
The Bee helps students improve their spelling, increase their vocabulary, learn concepts and develop correct English usage that will help them all their lives. In addition to the academic benefits, students also develop important life skills – like goal setting, time management and public speaking – that will help them as they advance in school and eventually to successful careers.
Watch last year's competition: