Olivia Strandberg is participating in the 92nd National Spelling Bee
by Loni Rahm
In the midst of the holiday weekend chaos and rain, a Chelan Middle School 8th grader and her mom boarded a plane bound for Washington, D.C. to participate in the 92nd Annual Scripp’s National Spelling Bee.
Olivia Strandberg earned her way into this prestigious annual competition by winning a series of local and regional spelling bees. She clinched the seat on the plane in March at a regional competition featuring 29 spelling champions. Now she will face 599 champions.
The 600 students attending the National Spelling Bee have a tiny advantage initially when they are given an advance list of 600 words that will be part of a two day “play-in” vocab test on Monday and Tuesday in an effort to win a spot in Thursday’s finals. Only the top 50 will advance to the nationally televised finals where each word is an unknown.
Olivia is no stranger to spelling bees. As a 4th grader, she won the Chelan School District spelling bee which pitted her against top spellers in grades 4-8. She’s also placed in the top 5 at regionals three times, including 2nd place as a 6th grader.
She indicated she has learned a few tricks to help her remember the words. Rather than trying to memorize the spelling of an entire word all at once, she breaks them into small pieces she calls “building blocks” and then strings them together. She always asks for the definition of the word. “Definitions are important because they help place the word”, she said.
Olivia’s mom, JoAnne told me her daughter loves to read (Olivia’s favorite books right now are The Sun is Also a Star and The Hate You Give) and had a huge vocabulary from an early age. Spelling bees are stressful for JoAnne who confessed she sometimes forgets to breathe when Olivia is at the microphone. “She’s all alone up there in the spotlight,” said JoAnne. “It’s nerve-wracking.”
It’s also very rewarding. The trip to the National Spelling Bee includes paid airfare, meals and accommodations at the Gaylord National Resort in National Harbor Maryland, and some downtime for sight seeing.
JoAnne and Olivia are grateful to the Washington Apple Education Foundation for sponsoring the regional spelling bee and the Chelan Middle School for the exciting send-off captured below by Ms. Bertomeu.
Sincerest congratulations to Olivia and the best of luck at Nationals!
LakeChelanNow related story, March 20: Middle School Student Wins Regional Spelling Bee
