Joey's school had a spelling bee Friday evening. Now, 249 students took the test to try to qualify for this - on the day after we found out MIL passed away. Surprisingly, he actually got the top score in the entire third grade on that test. The top 11 students in each grade level went on to the on-stage bee Friday evening.
A "round" consists of one word given to each child on the stage. When all of them have tried one word, that's the end of the round. The first round saw all of the first graders, and a good chunk of the second graders eliminated. A few kids from the other grades went out as well. Joey's word was "sombrero" - he spelled it without hesitation.
His second round word was "juggernaut" - again, no problem.
His third round word was "relevant" - no problem.
His fourth round word was "perpetual" - no problem.
At this point, there are five children left - 2 6th graders, 2 5th graders, and Joey.
He looked so small up there with those other kids (mind you, they're probably 3 years older, and at least a head taller).
His fifth round word was "penicillin" - which he misspelled as "penecillin". However, he had reached the point in competition where if all five students had gotten their word wrong, he would not have been eliminated. But, since 3 of the 5 got their words, he was eliminated. But wow, was he proud of himself! And not a tantrum because he got it wrong, or a tear, or anything. He just went to the gym as instructed and got to eating cookies and snacks with the other eliminated kids.
I'm not sure if officially he got 5th place or 4th - the rules seem to imply that all children eliminated in a given round are tied for the same place, which would be 4th in this case. Not that it matters, of course. We're proud of him anyhow.
A "round" consists of one word given to each child on the stage. When all of them have tried one word, that's the end of the round. The first round saw all of the first graders, and a good chunk of the second graders eliminated. A few kids from the other grades went out as well. Joey's word was "sombrero" - he spelled it without hesitation.
His second round word was "juggernaut" - again, no problem.
His third round word was "relevant" - no problem.
His fourth round word was "perpetual" - no problem.
At this point, there are five children left - 2 6th graders, 2 5th graders, and Joey.
He looked so small up there with those other kids (mind you, they're probably 3 years older, and at least a head taller).His fifth round word was "penicillin" - which he misspelled as "penecillin". However, he had reached the point in competition where if all five students had gotten their word wrong, he would not have been eliminated. But, since 3 of the 5 got their words, he was eliminated. But wow, was he proud of himself! And not a tantrum because he got it wrong, or a tear, or anything. He just went to the gym as instructed and got to eating cookies and snacks with the other eliminated kids.
I'm not sure if officially he got 5th place or 4th - the rules seem to imply that all children eliminated in a given round are tied for the same place, which would be 4th in this case. Not that it matters, of course. We're proud of him anyhow.
CONGRATULATIONS! How awesome is that!
