Congratulations to Vanya Shivashankar and Gokul Venkatachalam! They are Back-to-Back Co-Champions.
Winning Words
Vanya: scherenschnitte
Gokul: nunatak
Last year, Ansun Sujoe and Sriram Hathwar, won the National Spelling Bee (feuilleton/stichomythia).
It was also exciting to hear words that have been used before, such as urgrund (2007) and sprachgefühl (2006 - Round 1 Test).
Also, Kavya Shivashankar (2009 Champion: Laodicean), is the sister of Vanya - the first siblings to win the National Spelling Bee.
Congratulations to all spellers this year!
Spell with Your Dream!
Spell with Your Heart!
Spell with Your Love!
The Future of this Blog
Back in 2011, I began this blog to give tips and advice, links to resources and uses, and updates for the Bee. Now, I am about to graduate from high school and begin college this fall. Each year, I realize I post less and less. My major next year will require a lot of hours from me, along with several generals I still have to complete.
I do not know if I will let anyone take over this blog quite yet. I will keep this blog up, just in case anyone finds it useful to them (even if I don't deem this as a main source of information/advice).
For now, I wish you spellers all the best. Good luck with future endeavors and dreams.
Sincerely,
Anne
P.S. If you discover any errors in this blog, please feel free to email me at spellingchamp135@gmail.com or comment below!
Thursday, May 28, 2015
Championship Finals
Finals are finished, so now I can post! Championship finals are in less than twenty minutes.
You can watch the Bee here (scroll down until you see the spelling bee section)...
...or view the results here as each speller spells.
There are 10 championship finalists this year, including several veterans. We wish them all the best. I will write to you when the champion is declared.
Bee Week went by quickly this year. Congratulations to all the spellers this year!
Monday, May 25, 2015
Sorry for the Lack of Updates
Dear Spellers,
Since I am a senior this year, I have been busy with preparing for college and for the end of the year. I had several AP exams and will have several more finals. I will do my best to update you as much as possible with this week's Bee activities and provide tips, but I cannot make any promises.
For several years, I have run this blog to provide tips and give updates on the Bee. Each year it seems as if the posts have become less and less. Next year, when I start college I will be unable to update this blog. I will keep this blog, since I believe it has useful information regarding the Bee.
My finals are this week until Thursday, so I will not be able to watch the Bee until that evening.
For now, I wish all spellers the best of luck! Spell with Your Dream! Spell With Your Heart! Spell With Your Love!
Here are the four spellers from Utah this year (Park Record is a new sponsor this year)
250 Meimi A. Teeples Utah Valley University, Orem, Utah
251 Brody Dicks Park Record, Park City, Utah
252 James Bryner Southeast Education Service Center, Price, Utah
253 Ariana K. Babbitt The City Journals and Overstock.com, Salt Lake City, Utah
This year, my sister placed 2nd at the Salt Lake Valley Bee, but even if she lost she felt as if her friend deserved the championship more. That's true sportsmanship.
Since I am a senior this year, I have been busy with preparing for college and for the end of the year. I had several AP exams and will have several more finals. I will do my best to update you as much as possible with this week's Bee activities and provide tips, but I cannot make any promises.
For several years, I have run this blog to provide tips and give updates on the Bee. Each year it seems as if the posts have become less and less. Next year, when I start college I will be unable to update this blog. I will keep this blog, since I believe it has useful information regarding the Bee.
My finals are this week until Thursday, so I will not be able to watch the Bee until that evening.
For now, I wish all spellers the best of luck! Spell with Your Dream! Spell With Your Heart! Spell With Your Love!
Here are the four spellers from Utah this year (Park Record is a new sponsor this year)
250 Meimi A. Teeples Utah Valley University, Orem, Utah
251 Brody Dicks Park Record, Park City, Utah
252 James Bryner Southeast Education Service Center, Price, Utah
253 Ariana K. Babbitt The City Journals and Overstock.com, Salt Lake City, Utah
This year, my sister placed 2nd at the Salt Lake Valley Bee, but even if she lost she felt as if her friend deserved the championship more. That's true sportsmanship.
Friday, May 30, 2014
It has been 52 Years since the Bee had Co-Champions
Of course, we know the National Spelling Bee happens every year, but how often do you see Co-Champions at this event? Not very often, and it has been 52 years since the last Co-Champions (and Akeelah and the Bee does not count, since that was fictional). The other three times there have been Co-Champions were in 1950 - Diana Reynard and Colquitt Dean (meticulosity), 1957 - Sandra Owen and Dana Bennett (schappe), and 1962 - Nettie Crawford and Michael Day (esquamulose).
Congratulations to Sriram Hathwar and Ansun Sujoe! These two, after a grueling 22 rounds of the National Spelling Bee and 16 rounds of the Championship Finals, won the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Their winning words were stichomythia and feuilleton, respectively (the Scripps Spelling Bee DS game actually has feuilleton).
In Round 16, Sriram and Ansun both misspelled their words (corpsbruder and antigropelos, respectively). Sriram misspelled his word as korbruiter and Ansun misspelled his word as antigropolos. My friend and I called this an Akeelah and the Bee moment (except that Sriram and Ansun receive different words - unlike Akeelah and the Bee when the spellers receive the same word, after one misspells it; and we're pretty sure that the Sriram and Ansun weren't misspelling on purpose, unlike in the movie when the two spellers misspelled on purpose because they want the other person to win).
Corpsbruder is French + German. The French was corps (can be defined as a group of people, especially in the military), and the German was bruder (which literally means brother). The definition used was: a close comrade. If you think deeply, comrade can mostly associate with the words friend, ally, etc. and you know it's French, so most likely you could assume corps then the second half is the German word bruder. Most people who have brothers like to keep them close, or you have a really good friend who's like a brother, so if you know the German word, bruder would probably come to mind.
The other word was antigropelos. Ansun got most of the word right, except that he spelled the part of the word as polos (those pesky schwas!). It means waterproof leggings; The Greek root -pelos means mud, but I do not know if he could have gotten that out of waterproof leggings, but it seems like spellers have to think out of the box.
I will do an analysis this weekend (hopefully) on the other words from the Bee. There were a lot of words that I knew and a lot that left me thinking (including the ones I didn't know).
Another Akeelah and the Bee moment: If you've seen the movie, you may remember that after the spellers misspell that they continue going on until the end and are declared Co-Champions; this is what happened at this Bee; Ansun and Sriram are 7th and 8th graders, just like the two champions in the movie (Akeelah and Dylan), except that Ansun went to nationals twice and Sriram made it five times (missing only 2010 and 2012); in the movie Akeelah won on her first try, and Dylan - on his third.
Ansun went from not advancing to semifinals in 2013 to winning the Bee in 2014, which is also extremely rare, but it can happen. He's also the first 7th grader since 2000 to win the National Spelling Bee (when it was won by George Thampy); Sriram is the five-peat since 2006 to win the Bee (when it was won by Kerry Close).
Congratulations spellers! This is one of the greatest and rarest Bees that have occurred in history. I'm pretty sure Ansun and Sriram are elated, yet knackered!
Good luck with future Bees and endeavors!
Congratulations to Sriram Hathwar and Ansun Sujoe! These two, after a grueling 22 rounds of the National Spelling Bee and 16 rounds of the Championship Finals, won the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Their winning words were stichomythia and feuilleton, respectively (the Scripps Spelling Bee DS game actually has feuilleton).
In Round 16, Sriram and Ansun both misspelled their words (corpsbruder and antigropelos, respectively). Sriram misspelled his word as korbruiter and Ansun misspelled his word as antigropolos. My friend and I called this an Akeelah and the Bee moment (except that Sriram and Ansun receive different words - unlike Akeelah and the Bee when the spellers receive the same word, after one misspells it; and we're pretty sure that the Sriram and Ansun weren't misspelling on purpose, unlike in the movie when the two spellers misspelled on purpose because they want the other person to win).
Corpsbruder is French + German. The French was corps (can be defined as a group of people, especially in the military), and the German was bruder (which literally means brother). The definition used was: a close comrade. If you think deeply, comrade can mostly associate with the words friend, ally, etc. and you know it's French, so most likely you could assume corps then the second half is the German word bruder. Most people who have brothers like to keep them close, or you have a really good friend who's like a brother, so if you know the German word, bruder would probably come to mind.
The other word was antigropelos. Ansun got most of the word right, except that he spelled the part of the word as polos (those pesky schwas!). It means waterproof leggings; The Greek root -pelos means mud, but I do not know if he could have gotten that out of waterproof leggings, but it seems like spellers have to think out of the box.
I will do an analysis this weekend (hopefully) on the other words from the Bee. There were a lot of words that I knew and a lot that left me thinking (including the ones I didn't know).
Another Akeelah and the Bee moment: If you've seen the movie, you may remember that after the spellers misspell that they continue going on until the end and are declared Co-Champions; this is what happened at this Bee; Ansun and Sriram are 7th and 8th graders, just like the two champions in the movie (Akeelah and Dylan), except that Ansun went to nationals twice and Sriram made it five times (missing only 2010 and 2012); in the movie Akeelah won on her first try, and Dylan - on his third.
Ansun went from not advancing to semifinals in 2013 to winning the Bee in 2014, which is also extremely rare, but it can happen. He's also the first 7th grader since 2000 to win the National Spelling Bee (when it was won by George Thampy); Sriram is the five-peat since 2006 to win the Bee (when it was won by Kerry Close).
Congratulations spellers! This is one of the greatest and rarest Bees that have occurred in history. I'm pretty sure Ansun and Sriram are elated, yet knackered!
Good luck with future Bees and endeavors!
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Championship Finals Tonight!
Here are your championship finalists!!
Speller 38 Jacob Williamson from Cape Coral, Florida
Speller 263 Tejas Muthusamy from Glen Allen, Virginia (he's the youngest finalist at the age of 11)
Speller 87 Tajaun Gibbison from Mandeville, Jamaica
Speller 188 Ashwin Veeramani from North Royalton, Ohio (he had the same placard number as his sister, Anamika Veeramani, who won in 2010; maybe it's a lucky number)
Speller 43 Mary Horton from West Melbourne, Florida
Speller 58 Alia Abiad from Western Springs, Illinois
Speller 232 Kate Miller from Abilene, Texas
Speller 139 Gokul Venkatachalam from Chesterfield, Missouri
Speller 237 Ansun Sujoe from Fort Worth, Texas
Speller 255 Samuel Pereles from Charlottesville, Virginia
Speller 20 from Neha Konahalla from Cupertino, California
Speller 154 Sriram Hathwar from Painted Post, New York (he first went to nationals in 2008 and placed 3rd last year)
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2014/finishers/html
Sriram Hathwar was the only speller from last year's championship finalists to make it to make it this far this year. Syamantak Payra was eliminated in semifinals, and Vanya Shivashankar, after the finalists were announced; she has one year left.
Good luck to the finalists!
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Preliminaries are Over/Semifinals are Tomorrow
Preliminaries are over, and there were forty-six spellers who advanced to semifinals.
Here are the Round Results
Spelling
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2014/round_results/summary/2
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2014/round_results/summary/3
Vocabulary
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2014/round_results_vocab/summary/2
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2014/round_results_vocab/summary/3
Round 1 Test (Spelling and Vocabulary)
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/graded_words?reportFormat=1&round=1
And here are your semifinalists:
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2014/finishers/html?type=semi
Among these semifinalists are last year's championship finalists: Vanya Shivashankar, Sriram Hathwar, and Syamantak Payra.
Unfortunately, no one from Utah advanced to Semifinals this year. Great job, Michael Jones, Mikayla Hall, and Grange Simpson - Utah is proud!
Here are the words they spelled in Rounds 2 and 3:
#251 Mikayla Hall - hafiz; ranunculus (misspelled as rununculus)
#252 Grange Simpson - durwan; cornichon
#279 Michael Jones - tanha; Cypriot
According to the vocabulary results for Rounds 2 and 3, Mikayla and Grange missed one of their vocabulary words, and Michael got both of his right. Great job!
Tomorrow Semifinals will begin at 10 AM Eastern Time (8 AM where I am).
Good luck to all!
P.S. Sorry for the lack of updates this year. School ends next week, and I have a lot of projects to finish. I will write after Semifinals and after Championship Finals. If there's anything you want to know just comment, and I'll make a blog post response.
Here are the Round Results
Spelling
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2014/round_results/summary/2
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2014/round_results/summary/3
Vocabulary
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2014/round_results_vocab/summary/2
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2014/round_results_vocab/summary/3
Round 1 Test (Spelling and Vocabulary)
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/graded_words?reportFormat=1&round=1
And here are your semifinalists:
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2014/finishers/html?type=semi
Among these semifinalists are last year's championship finalists: Vanya Shivashankar, Sriram Hathwar, and Syamantak Payra.
Unfortunately, no one from Utah advanced to Semifinals this year. Great job, Michael Jones, Mikayla Hall, and Grange Simpson - Utah is proud!
Here are the words they spelled in Rounds 2 and 3:
#251 Mikayla Hall - hafiz; ranunculus (misspelled as rununculus)
#252 Grange Simpson - durwan; cornichon
#279 Michael Jones - tanha; Cypriot
According to the vocabulary results for Rounds 2 and 3, Mikayla and Grange missed one of their vocabulary words, and Michael got both of his right. Great job!
Tomorrow Semifinals will begin at 10 AM Eastern Time (8 AM where I am).
Good luck to all!
P.S. Sorry for the lack of updates this year. School ends next week, and I have a lot of projects to finish. I will write after Semifinals and after Championship Finals. If there's anything you want to know just comment, and I'll make a blog post response.
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Spelling Bee Update/Tips
I just finished my math final, and it was great! Now back to Bee business. Yesterday, the spellers had a barbecue and had the Round 1 Test today. Tomorrow, the 281 spellers will take the stage in front of cameras, an audience, etc. The pressure's on!
I'm pretty sure these spellers are prepared, but here's some advice:
I'm pretty sure these spellers are prepared, but here's some advice:
- Say the word back to the pronouncer. He'll make sure you're saying it correctly.
- Ask questions: definition, origin, part of speech, sentence, and alternate pronunciations.
- Make sure you think hard.
- If you are in the middle of a word and need to start over, say, "May I please start over", and make sure you retrace the letters you first said, because once you say a letter, it cannot be taken back.
- Say the word, spell it, then say the word again (saying the word before and after spelling is not required, but it is best so the judges know when you start and finish)
- Watch the time
- As you spell the word do not be nervous or think about anything else. Completely block out the audience and focus on the word.
Remember:
"There are no immediate eliminations for misspelling or providing an incorrect answer in the Preliminaries Test. Upon incorrectly spelling a word in Round Two or Three, the speller is eliminated from the competition. Spellers eliminated during Round Two are tied for the same place. Spellers eliminated during Round Three are tied for the same place. Immediately after Round Three a “maximum of 50” standard is applied to remaining spellers’ scores accrued during the Preliminaries. Spellers’ scores are plotted on a chart. Beginning at 36 on the chart, spellers at each consecutive scoring level are added until a sum of no more than 50 spellers has been attained. All remaining spellers are eliminated. All spellers eliminated after Round Three and before the start of the Semifinals are tied for the same place."
http://spellingbee.com/contest-rules
Good luck to all!
Spell with Your Dream
Spell with Your Heart
Spell with Your Love
Sunday, May 25, 2014
Bee Week 2014
It's finally Bee Week, and spellers have been arriving in D.C.! I won't post much until after my Math final on Tuesday. For now, you can follow Scripps on their Facebook, Instagram, Flickr, Twitter, and Youtube!
See you then, and I hope to post several tips!
Good luck, spellers!
Spell with Your Dream
Spell with Your Heart
Spell with Your Love
See you then, and I hope to post several tips!
Good luck, spellers!
Spell with Your Dream
Spell with Your Heart
Spell with Your Love
Monday, May 19, 2014
Salt Lake Valley Champion
I am very late on this, but I have been busy.
This article is from March, after Salt Lake Valley Champion, Michael Jones, won. His winning word was hedgehopper. My sister placed seventh, but she still has next year!
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/57717000-78/spelling-bee-lake-salt.html.csp
And Vismaya Kharkar is right (Salt Lake Valley Champion from 2011-2013; 5th Place at Nationals in 2013); the Bee truly is a "once in-a-lifetime" event.
"These are not just champion spellers," Jonathan Johnson, executive vice chairman of Overstock.com, told the crowd before the event started. "They are becoming champion thinkers. We worked hard to make this happen and our thanks to the contestants who worked hard to get here."
That statement is very true to the spellers.
This year, most of the words seemed to have come from English and Latin, but I remember during my Bee years, spellers received words from Latin, Spanish, German, Dutch, French, Russian, etc.
Thanks Overstock.com for sponsoring the Salt Lake Valley Spelling Bee. This year's Bee would have not been possible without you!
Good luck to Michael and the rest of the spellers!
This article is from March, after Salt Lake Valley Champion, Michael Jones, won. His winning word was hedgehopper. My sister placed seventh, but she still has next year!
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/57717000-78/spelling-bee-lake-salt.html.csp
And Vismaya Kharkar is right (Salt Lake Valley Champion from 2011-2013; 5th Place at Nationals in 2013); the Bee truly is a "once in-a-lifetime" event.
"These are not just champion spellers," Jonathan Johnson, executive vice chairman of Overstock.com, told the crowd before the event started. "They are becoming champion thinkers. We worked hard to make this happen and our thanks to the contestants who worked hard to get here."
That statement is very true to the spellers.
This year, most of the words seemed to have come from English and Latin, but I remember during my Bee years, spellers received words from Latin, Spanish, German, Dutch, French, Russian, etc.
Thanks Overstock.com for sponsoring the Salt Lake Valley Spelling Bee. This year's Bee would have not been possible without you!
Good luck to Michael and the rest of the spellers!
National Spelling Bee is Near!
Sorry again for not writing for a while; I was extremely busy with many activities and AP testing. Unfortunately, I still have finals to deal with, then I have to study for the ACT. The Bee starts next week, already! After that, I'll have to wait for the scores then begin applying to colleges, since I'll be studying in Vienna, Austria (most likely - I already got in the school; it's just dealing with all the other details, which have to be settled by August) from September to December. For now, let's get down to "Bee" business (I feel like I'm making a reference to Disney's Mulan).
This year, there are 281 spellers from the US and around the world.
Sriram Hathwar (3rd Place 2013), who first went to the Bee in 2008, will be returning to the National Spelling Bee for his fifth time. Vanya Shivashankar (5th Place in 2013) - whose sister, Kavya Shivashankar, won the 2009 Bee - will be returning for her fourth time. Ashwin Veeramani - whose sister won the 2010 Bee - will be returning for his second time.
Hussain Godhrawala is the youngest speller this year.
This year, there are three spellers from Utah.
Mikayla Hall
Grange Simpson
And the speller who won the Salt Lake Valley Bee: Michael Jones
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/spellers/2014/279
I wish all the spellers the best of luck! This year's Bee will be a great one!
I wish all the spellers the best of luck! This year's Bee will be a great one!
Five-Year Repeater (1)
Four-Year Repeaters (5)
Three-Year Repeaters (13)
Two-Year Repeaters (59)
Saturday, March 22, 2014
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:
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!
Monday, March 10, 2014
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!
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!
Thursday, February 6, 2014
Update/Spelling Bee Season 2014
I have been busy lately with school and many other activities. My sister just got second place at her school bee today, and she's going to district (which is just all the other campuses of her school; she goes to a charter school, which has several campuses). If she wins that, she'll go to the Salt Lake Valley Spelling Bee. Speaking of the spelling bee in the Salt Lake Valley, we almost did not have a sponsor. A few weeks ago, the valley finally got a sponsor for the Bee.
Some regional bees already have determined who they are sending to the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Judging from this year's school list, they included words such as don't and bella voce. The words from the Spell It! are pretty much the same from prior years.
I am excited for this Bee Season! Good luck to everyone!
Some regional bees already have determined who they are sending to the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Judging from this year's school list, they included words such as don't and bella voce. The words from the Spell It! are pretty much the same from prior years.
I am excited for this Bee Season! Good luck to everyone!
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Arvind Mahankali is the Champion!!!!!!!!!
His word was knaidel (dumpling) - a Yiddish derived German word. "The German curse has turned into a German blessing," him and his brother said.
Congratulations to all spellers! This was a great Bee!
Second place goes to Pranav Sivakumar, third goes to Sriram Hathwar, fourth to Amber Born, Vanya Shivashankar and Vismaya Kharkar tied for fifth. Grace Remmer, Chetan Reddy, and Syamantak Payra tied for seventh. Christal Schermeister placed tenth, and Nikitha Chandran placed 11th.
We hope to see Vanya, Sriram, and Syamantak next year!
Now that the Bee is over, what will you do? Study, relax? Grace said she's going to practice her violin and viola more, and Arvind said he's going to study Physics!
What am I going to do? Summer Reading for AP Literature; Summer assignment for AP US History, planning to write a children's opera (the music, at least); choir recording; practice flute, piano and voice; compose and arrange music; coach my sister and young friends for the Bee (if I have time); study languages; go on several vacations; youth camp; definitely a lot more!
Here are the results:
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2013/round_results
I'm signing off for the 2013 Bee now! See you next year (or in a few weeks).
Congratulations to all spellers! This was a great Bee!
Second place goes to Pranav Sivakumar, third goes to Sriram Hathwar, fourth to Amber Born, Vanya Shivashankar and Vismaya Kharkar tied for fifth. Grace Remmer, Chetan Reddy, and Syamantak Payra tied for seventh. Christal Schermeister placed tenth, and Nikitha Chandran placed 11th.
We hope to see Vanya, Sriram, and Syamantak next year!
Now that the Bee is over, what will you do? Study, relax? Grace said she's going to practice her violin and viola more, and Arvind said he's going to study Physics!
What am I going to do? Summer Reading for AP Literature; Summer assignment for AP US History, planning to write a children's opera (the music, at least); choir recording; practice flute, piano and voice; compose and arrange music; coach my sister and young friends for the Bee (if I have time); study languages; go on several vacations; youth camp; definitely a lot more!
Here are the results:
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2013/round_results
I'm signing off for the 2013 Bee now! See you next year (or in a few weeks).
Congratulations, Vismaya!
She placed fifth! Great job, Vismaya and Utah!
Arvind just received dehnstufe - a German word, and he gets it. He received Jugendstil and misspelled it in 2011, and schwannoma in 2012 and misspelled it, too.
Could co-champions happen tonight? Possibly. Three remain: Arvind, Pranav, and Sriram (who was first eight when he came in 2008).
Good luck to these three!
Arvind just received dehnstufe - a German word, and he gets it. He received Jugendstil and misspelled it in 2011, and schwannoma in 2012 and misspelled it, too.
Could co-champions happen tonight? Possibly. Three remain: Arvind, Pranav, and Sriram (who was first eight when he came in 2008).
Good luck to these three!
Watch the Championship Finals Tonight!
http://espn.go.com/watchespn/index/_/id/886773/2013-scripps-national-spelling-bee-finals
Good luck, spellers! Maybe my sister will come next year and the year after, I hope!
Good luck, spellers! Maybe my sister will come next year and the year after, I hope!
And Here are Your Championship Finalists!
http://public.spellingbee.com/public/results/2013/finishers/html
And for Utah: This is the first time in the Bee's History that a speller from Utah makes it to Championship Finals! Congratulations, Vismaya!
*In last year's championship finals
No. 39: Grace Remmer
No. 41: Christal Schermeister
No. 44 Nikitha Chandran
No. 64: Pranav Sivakumar
No. 91: Vanya Shivashankar
No. 115: Amber Born
No. 156: Sriram Hathwar
No. 163: Arvind Mahankali*
No. 238: Chetan Reddy
No. 242: Syamantak Payra
No. 256: Vismaya Kharkar
Congratulations to all spellers, and good luck to the spellers tonight!
I have to go and study for a test tomorrow now.
And for Utah: This is the first time in the Bee's History that a speller from Utah makes it to Championship Finals! Congratulations, Vismaya!
*In last year's championship finals
No. 39: Grace Remmer
No. 41: Christal Schermeister
No. 44 Nikitha Chandran
No. 64: Pranav Sivakumar
No. 91: Vanya Shivashankar
No. 115: Amber Born
No. 156: Sriram Hathwar
No. 163: Arvind Mahankali*
No. 238: Chetan Reddy
No. 242: Syamantak Payra
No. 256: Vismaya Kharkar
Congratulations to all spellers, and good luck to the spellers tonight!
I have to go and study for a test tomorrow now.
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Vismaya Made it to Semifinals!
Vismaya Kharkar, the speller from Salt Lake, has done it again! She made it to semifinals! This is her last year, and she tied for tenth last year! Who knows? Maybe Utah will have their first champion, but there are also other spellers to look out for.
All these spellers are fourth and fifth timers at the Bee!
All these spellers are fourth and fifth timers at the Bee!
Then we also have other spellers:
91 Vanya Shivashankar - the sister of the 2009 Champion, Kavya Shivashankar, who is at the Bee for her third time!
The computer-based test was today, and there were twelve spelling words and twelve vocabulary words (one point per word for both), again. Then the speller received two vocabulary words, again (3 points each).
Tomorrow: In Rounds 5 and 6, if the speller spells his/her word correctly he/she receives 3-points per round. If the word is misspelled, the speller is out. The spellers will have to meet a certain score to make it to the Championship Finals...
Good luck to all!
Tomorrow: In Rounds 5 and 6, if the speller spells his/her word correctly he/she receives 3-points per round. If the word is misspelled, the speller is out. The spellers will have to meet a certain score to make it to the Championship Finals...
Good luck to all!
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