Here's exactly how the competition works, how judges score, and how last season's winners prepared — no secrets.
Every round is fully oral. Students climb four levels — school, cluster, block, and the district final — category by category.
Students spell aloud at the microphone. They may ask for the definition, a sentence, or a repeat — just like the big international bees.
Every oral round is scored by a three-member panel from the advisory council. Pronunciation queries and appeals are resolved on the spot.
Every routine below comes straight from interviews with last season's district finalists.
Every word in the early levels comes from your category guidebook. Master it fully before touching anything else.
Winners practise orally, the way they'll compete — spell into a mirror or to a parent, letter by letter, at a steady pace.
Word families and roots (bio-, -tion, -ough) let you spell words you've never seen. The guidebook groups them for you.
The competition is fully oral — but copying tricky words by hand a few times is one of the best memory tools at home.
"Definition, please?" and "Can you use it in a sentence?" buy thinking time on stage. Rehearse asking them.
