The Times Spelling Bee

Childwall Sports College entered the Times Spelling Bee competition and our heat was on Tuesday 28th April at the Odeon in Trafford Park. There were ten teams competing for the only place through to the semi final. Over 800 teams took place from all across the UK in these regional heats. This is the first time this competition has been held and we did not quite know what to expect. Our team consisted of 4 Year 7 pupils: Rebecca Anderson, Morgan Sefton, Lauren Wallace and Liam Brooks.

There were two rounds in the competition. The first round was a sudden death spelling challenge. In this round any mistake eliminated competitors until no one was left, after a certain number of words extra points were awarded. The second round was a timed round in which the team had to spell as many word correctly as they could. In this round tactics were important the teams choosing categories of words for point and only one competitor spelling the word aloud.

Our team slipped up in the first round, under some provocation from another team it must be added, and was eliminated quite early on. The second round was much better and the team accounted well for themselves scoring 21 points in two minutes and not too far away from some of the best scores. However the combined total was not sufficient to send us through to the semi finals.

The team were winners in other ways. The behaviour and attitude of the team was excellent. They were mature, sensible and creditable as representatives of the school. The team worked fairly together. For instance in round two some schools had the best speller in the team answering all the questions. However the Childwall team took turns so everyone was able to contribute. This cost us in terms of time but the team ethic was excellent.

Parents came to support us and I am grateful for their support. This was another plus to the afternoon particularly as one of the inclusion targets is to include parents and carers more in the life of the school.

Many thanks are due to the four competitors who took part. For them it was a nerve-racking experience. They were all awarded a certificate for outstanding spelling and each received a goody bag as a prize. Many thanks to Mrs Gambardella who selected and coached the team – she received a free box of popcorn for her efforts. I have enjoyed the competition and look forward to next year’s competition.

Finally, well done to our team: Rebecca Anderson, Morgan Sefton, Lauren Wallace and Liam Brooks.

W Lewis

Literacy Co-ordinator