A narrative portrait of the America's national spelling bee competition offers insight into its subculture of young wordsmiths, competitive parents, and spectator tension, sharing the stories of five top contestants to offer insight into their ambitions and winning strategies. 40,000 first printing.
An anthropologist uses spelling bees as a lens to examine the unique and diverse traits of Generation Z--and why they are destined for success At first glance, Generation Z (youth born after 1997) seems to be made up of anxious overachievers, hounded by Tiger Moms and constantly tracked on social media. One would think that competitors in the National Spelling Bee -- the most popular brain sport in America -- would be the worst off. Counterintuitively, anthropologist Shalini Shankar argues that, far from being simply overstressed and overscheduled, Gen Z spelling bee competitors are learning crucial twenty-first-century skills from their high-powered lives, displaying a sophisticated understanding of self-promotion, self-direction, and social mobility. Drawing on original ethnographic research, including interviews with participants, judges, and parents, Shankar examines the outsize impact of immigrant parents and explains why Gen Z kids are on a path to success.
A heartwarming story about a girl who's afraid to follow her dreams, and the family who help make them happen. The perfect book for middle school girls, The Stupendously Spectacular Spelling Bee, is a wonderful way to inspire children to believe "I can do hard things", too! India Wimple can spell. Brilliantly. Every Friday night, she and her family watch the Stupendously Spectacular Spelling Bee on TV. When the Wimples suggest she enter the next Bee, India feels nothing but trepidation. She's sure she's not good enough—but with the support of her family, India finds the courage to sign up. There are plenty of obstacles to reaching the finals, like Summer Millicent Ernestine Beauregard-Champion, a spoiled rich girl who isn't afraid to step on anyone who gets in her way of winning. India also needs to overcome stage fright, shyness, and anxiety. Full of lovable characters, new vocabulary words, and more, this is the perfect spelling bee book for girls 8-12. The whole thing seems rather calamitous to India. But with hope, hard work, and a little bit of heart, something splendiferous might be on the horizon...
Does your child dream of winning a school spelling bee, or even competing in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in the Washington, D.C., area? You've found the perfect place to start. Words of the Champions: Your Key to the Bee is the new official study resource from the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Help prepare your child for a 2020 or 2021 classroom, grade-level, school, regional, district or state spelling bee with this list of 4,000 spelling words. The School Spelling Bee Study List, featuring 450 words, is part of the total collection. All words in this guide may be found in our official dictionary, Merriam-Webster Unabridged (http: //unabridged.merriam-webster.com/)
Cordelia loves to spell in every way: studying spelling and practicing spells. She especially likes to double spell, turning her C-A-T into a new C-O-A-T by zapping it with the letter O. So when she sees a sign for the Witches' Double Spelling Bee, she knows it's meant just for her. Cordelia is determined to W-I-N—but so is the thirteen-time champion Beulah Divine, age two hundred and three. Has Cordelia studied and practiced enough to outspell the most fiendish witch at the bee?
Eliza Naumann, a seemingly unremarkable nine-year-old, expects never to fit into her gifted family: her autodidact father, Saul, absorbed in his study of Jewish mysticism; her brother, Aaron, the vessel of his father's spiritual ambitions; and her brilliant but distant lawyer-mom, Miriam. But when Eliza sweeps her school and district spelling bees in quick succession, Saul takes it as a sign that she is destined for greatness. In this altered reality, Saul inducts her into his hallowed study and lavishes upon her the attention previously reserved for Aaron, who in his displacement embarks upon a lone quest for spiritual fulfillment. When Miriam's secret life triggers a familial explosion, it is Eliza who must order the chaos. Myla Goldberg's keen eye for detail brings Eliza's journey to three-dimensional life. As she rises from classroom obscurity to the blinding lights and outsized expectations of the National Bee, Eliza's small pains and large joys are finely wrought and deeply felt. Not merely a coming-of-age story, Goldberg's first novel delicately examines the unraveling fabric of one family. The outcome of this tale is as startling and unconventional as her prose, which wields its metaphors sharply and rings with maturity. The work of a lyrical and gifted storyteller, Bee Season marks the arrival of an extraordinarily talented new writer.
National Book Award winner Kathryn Erskine delivers a contemporary story about a boy with a mystical worldview and a love of science and comets as he faces questions about what makes him special. Some might say Julian is sheltered. But he lives large, and his eternal optimism allows him to see infinite possibilities wherever he looks. Despite his optimism, he is anxious about his stressed family falling apart. Even his ability to "uni-sense" what's happening with his sister is gone. If he can make his family focus on the magic in the universe, surely they'll appreciate life again. Now that they are moving from Washington, DC, to rural Maine, Julian can use his beloved telescope without any light pollution. He can discover a comet, name it for himself, and show his family how they're all truly connected.As Julian searches the night sky, he encounters a force that may drive his plan apart. His neighbor, Mr. X, could bring an end to his parents' dream of opening their B&B. Could one negative force unravel everything? An avid student of science, Julian understands that there is much about the universe that we don't yet know. Who is to say what's possible and what's not?
A heartwarming story about a girl who is no longer afraid to follow her dreams, and the family who help make them happen. India Wimple can spell with the best of them. How else would she have won the Stupendously Spectacular Spelling Bee and garnered an invitation to the Most Marvelous International Spelling Bee? India couldn't be more thrilled to travel to London along with the rest of the Wimples. And at first, it seems like a dream come true; she reunites with her spelling bee friends, and they even get to meet the Queen! But there is skulduggery afoot, with some rather mysterious goings-on going on and a series of accidents that seem to be not-so-accidental after all. India has her suspicions about who is behind the duplicitous demonstrations. But can she solve the mystery in time to save the competition?