On Monday 23rd June at the Whitehorse Manor Junior School hall, 16 nervous, excited finalists took to the stage for the first ever Spelling Bee at the Trust. Ms Achenbach and Mrs Parker were seated ready as judges and 9 classes from across the Trust waited in anticipation to see who would triumph in this first ever contest. After the first round words from the year 3 word list, all contestants were still standing. Audience participation prizes gave the finalists a short interlude before they continued to amaze with their spelling knowledge. Round 3 and 4 words moved to words from the year 3 curriculum and the number of finalists lessened. The audience, adults included, were in awe of the children as they correctly spelled words like ‘metamorphic’, ‘chronological’ and ‘conjunction’. Following a short dance break, the competition moved into the general knowledge spelling round and soon there were only 2 competitors left. Kristyn from Brigstock and Leon from Cypress. They both continued to delight their fans in the audience with their knowledge and both had chances to win. The tension in the hall was palpable as Kristyn slowly but surely spelled out ‘appreciate’ to claim the title in a sudden death finish.
All 16 children were absolutely amazing and should hold their heads up high as champions from their own schools. The children watching the event were very well behaved and everyone had a very exciting morning. The aim of the Spelling Bee was to raise the profile of spelling and to do so in a fun, joyous way. I believe that both objectives were met on Monday morning.
Thank you to everyone involved. Mrs Price.
The amazing finalists:
Atwood School – Ben, Jack, Michael, Mehran
Brigstock – Teyahmiah, Olaf, Kristyn
Cypress School – Mabli, Leon, Favour
Ecclesbourne – Brian, Abdul, Jude
Whitehorse Manor Junior -Aviel, Astra, Benjamin
