Sandy Creek Central School District • News • Sandy Creek students compete in district spelling bee

Sandy Creek students compete in district spelling bee

November 21st, 2019 by Brandon Wood, Public Relations

Pictured are the top four finishers from the Sandy Creek spelling bee. From left is Sophie Harris (first place), Marilyn Dewhirst (second), Chloe Gonyeau (third) and Haidyn Soluri (fourth).

More than a dozen students competed recently in the Sandy Creek Central School Districts annual spelling bee, an early round of the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

The top four students from the bee qualified for the next round, which is a written test held in January for The Post-Standard/Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Every year I am so impressed by the courage these students have to go in front of their peers and try to spell these words, said SCCSD teacher Brandie Norton, who judged the bee along with fellow teacher Kristen Dingman.

Seventh-grade student Sophie Harris won the bee, followed by runner-up Marilyn Dewhirst, a fifth-grader.

Seventh-grader Chloe Gonyeau and sixth-grader Haidyn Soluri rounded out the top four, qualifying for the written round along with Harris and Dewhirst.

A total of 13 students took the stage in the auditorium in front of classmates, teachers and family members to begin the bee. The entire field included fifth-graders Dewhirst, Allie Felio and Kaylie Parker; sixth-graders Brody Pecha, Simon Preston and Soluri; seventh-graders Abigail Balcom, John Darou, Gonyeau, Harris, Colton Killiam and Piper Phillips; and eighth-grader Makenna Brown.

After one round there were no students eliminated, but the words became more difficult with each round until only Harris and Dewhirst remained. The two went back-and-forth until Harris eventually spelled the winning word, deportment.

Norton, who thanked the administrative team for their support of the competition, noted that the top finishers received a cash prize. The prizes were sponsored by the Sandy Creek Teachers Association, Elementary Climate Committee, Middle School Student Council and the family of Gavin Kiernan, a former Spelling Bee champion.

View a full gallery that includes action shots of every participant on the Sandy Creek Facebook at the following link: https://www.facebook.com/SandyCreekComets/posts/1036949396655969

Gallery

The whole field of participants in this year's Sandy Creek spelling bee is pictured taking final instructions from Brandie Norton, a SCCSD teacher who ran the event.