Salt Lake Valley Spelling Bee

Today was the Salt Lake Valley Spelling Bee, and it was outstanding! My sister placed seventh, but at least she has next year. The champion's winning word was hedgehopper. Until a news article and/or the spellers' profiles are released, I will not mention the champion's name due to privacy.

The head pronouncer was three-time Salt Lake Valley Champion (and 5th Place at the National Spelling Bee in 2013), Vismaya Kharkar.

When I did the Bee, I remember only receiving a T-shirt and a certificate. Now the Salt Lake Valley has a new sponsor, the spellers received more:

• Bee Keeper, with information about each speller: Where they went to school, their grade, the college they want to go to (a lot of spellers had the University of Utah and Brigham Young University), and what they want to be when they grow up. 
• A medal for participation.
• A T-shirt with the 2013 National Spelling Bee Championship word: knaidel

Back then even the championship speller received a few awards, a Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, and of course a trip to Washington, D.C. for the National Spelling Bee. This year the champion received a trophy, a Webster's Third New International Dictionary (2002), a few awards, and of course the trip to D.C. 

After the Bee, I talked to the champion, and we discussed the materials that would be very useful: Hexco Products (these are very pricey, but they are very beneficial), How to Spell Like a Champ, Consolidated Word List, etc. I also told him useful sites and other resources. Vismaya also gave him advice for what to look forward to at nationals. 

Good luck to him and all the other spellers!

Update on the Bee/Current Life

There have been great regional bees, including one that happened in Missouri. There were ninety rounds, in two days (separated by two weeks). After all those esoteric words, the winning word was definition. 

http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/08/us/spelling-bee-marathon/

Also, Vanya Shivashankar, sister of 2009 Champion, Kavya (winning word: Laodicean) is returning to nationals.

http://www.kansascity.com/2014/02/13/4821348/olathe-12-year-old-vanya-shivashankar.html

My sister got first place at her district bee (all the campuses of her school in the Salt Lake Valley), and she's moving on to the Salt Lake Valley Spelling Bee, which will be on Saturday, March 22 (more details to come soon). Their spellers were amazing, especially at the end when the last four spellers kept going for several rounds without misspelling any word. She won with the word suture \ˈsü-chər\ (Latin to French to English, noun: a strand or fiber used to sew parts of the living body)

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/suture

Current Life

I had the state math contest today, and the test was difficult, but I am surprised that I was able to solve some of the really difficult problems. I tried my best, and I hope I did well.

All is going well with choir, orchestra, solo performances, etc., and I'm currently preparing for an opera next month with the Lyric Opera and the Utah Philharmonia, along with my choir. I've also been composing/arranging. Some of the music theory I've done, have had words I remember from the Bee (and other music. Some have been used at the National Spelling Bee, such as attacca \əˈtäkə, -akə\ (Italian; verb imperative; attack at once - used as a direction in music at the end of a movement to begin the next without pause), so when I'm composing I have to try to figure out how to segue \ˈse-(ˌ)gwā, ˈsā-\ (Latin to Italian; verb imperative; proceed to what follows without pause - used as a direction in music into the next movement, or part (depending on the type of work). I've been teaching flute and voice, as well.

With school, I'm working hard to keep my grades where they are and/or raise them. AP classes and Concurrent Enrollment are difficult, but I've found ways to manage my time for all my other activities.

I'll write more when I can. For now, good luck!