Post Tagged with: "Scripps National Spelling Bee"

5th Grader Madelyn Petrinec Places in Top 3 at SJ Regional Spelling Bee, Interviewed for WHYY-TV Program on Bee

Fifth grader Madelyn Petrinec finished in 3rd place in the South Jersey Regional Spelling Bee on March 25 and represented ACS well as she competed against 19 other top spellers from schools across South Jersey. WHYY-TV, a sponsor of the Bee, recorded the spelling competition and also interviewed Maddie, along with the winner and runner-up, for a program that will air in June on PBS station TV-12 in South Jersey.

The bee was held at the Camden Big Picture Learning Academy. ACS Spelling Club Coach Jessica Martin as well as Maddie’s parents, Nathan and Kelly Petrinec, siblings Grace and Samuel, and grandparents David and Sue Petrinec, who traveled from Indiana, were on hand to cheer her on. This was not Maddie’s first appearance at the regional bee. She represented ACS at last year’s bee and earned 5th place.

The regional and national competitions are open to students from the 5th to 8th grades. Maddie finished just shy of the opportunity to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, DC in May. Only the first place winner and runner-up are allowed to advance to the national bee.

“I was sad at first, but then excited to have made it to 3rd place,” Maddie said. “Next year I want to go all the way.” After winning the ACS 1st-8th grade bee on February 16, Maddie had five weeks to study 25 pages of words provided by the regional bee organizers. She said she studied the word list with her mother every night for 40-45 minutes over those five weeks and remembers reviewing the word  “connivery,” which came up in the 11th round of the bee.  She made a mistake and spelled it with one “n” instead of two. The bee only went two more rounds before concluding with the top two winners.

During the week prior to the regional bee, two South Jersey media outlets published articles about Maddie winning the ACS Spelling Bee and moving on to compete in the regional spelling bee.

CLICK HERE to read the Press of Atlantic City article on Maddie and the ACS Spelling Bee.

CLICK HERE to read the Shore Local Newsmagazine article on the ACS Bee.

 

5th Grader Madelyn Petrinec Wins ACS Spelling Bee, Advances to March 25 Scripps South Jersey Regional Bee

Congratulations to 5th grader Madelyn Petrinec for winning our school Spelling Bee on February 16, placing first among 19 students from the 1st to 8th grades after 2 hours and 27 rounds of competition. Maddie, who also won last year’s school Spelling Bee, will move on to represent ACS at the Scripps South Jersey Regional Spelling Bee in Camden on Saturday, March 25.

Coming in second place was 1st grader Zackary Alobeidy. 6th grader Brody Panetta placed third, staying in the Bee through the first 19 rounds. Zackary and Maddie then went head to head for another 7 rounds before Zackary misspelled “thurible” and Madelyn correctly spelled “nares” and then “eurythmics,” marking the 213th word in the competition.

Parents, teachers, and students were on hand in the gym to watch the bee and applaud between rounds. The students who competed in the bee had either won or placed runner up in classroom bees held in January. 6th grader Gaebriel Hahn-Chaney and 8th grader Caedyn Hahn-Chaney, who are brothers, represented their classes well and finished in 4th and 5th place, respectively.

Under the guidance of Spelling Bee coach Jessica Martin, the students had a month to prepare for the all-school bee by studying a list of 450 words provided by the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Martin was also the pronouncer for the Bee. “Since this will be Maddie’s second time representing ACS at the regional bee, I am optimistic that she will draw upon her prior experience and will do well in this upcoming competition,” Martin said.

The top 19 spellers who competed in the Bee, by grade level, were: 1st Grade: Zackary Alobeidy, Ellie Campbell; 2nd Grade: Chase Hemberger, Carson Myers, Janessa Obot; 3rd Grade: Chloe Capito, Amelia Crespo, Rachael Eachus; 4th Grade: Caitlin Doucett, Lindsay Eachus; 5th Grade: Giovanna (Bo) Altier, Tamara Kulov, Maddie Petrinec; 6th Grade: Eva Dimashi, Gaebriel Hahn-Chaney, and Brody Panetta; 7th Grade: Grace Lushina and Nino Miranda; and 8th Grade: Caedyn Hahn-Chaney.

4th Grader Madelyn Petrinec Wins ACS Spelling Bee, Advances to March 12 Scripps S. Jersey Regional Bee

Congratulations to 4th grader Madelyn Petrinec for winning our school Spelling Bee on February 17, rising to the top spot among 21 competitors from the 1st to 8th grades after 2 hours and 43 rounds of competition. Madelyn will move on to represent ACS at the Scripps South Jersey Regional Spelling Bee in Vineland on Saturday, March 12. We’ll be rooting for you, Madelyn!

Coming in second place was 7th grader Garrett Martin. 4th grader Tamara Kulov placed third, staying in the Bee through the first 21 rounds. Garrett and Madelyn then went head to head for another 21 rounds before Garrett misspelled “Chelonia” and Madelyn correctly spelled “justaucorps.”

Parents, teachers, and students were on hand in the gym to watch the bee and applaud between rounds. The 21 students from the 1st to 8th grades who competed in the bee had either won or placed runner up in classroom bees held in January.

Under the guidance of Spelling Bee Advisor Jessica Martin, the students had a month to prepare for the all-school bee by studying a list of 450 words provided by the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Martin was also the pronouncer for the Bee.

The top 21 spellers who competed in the Bee, by grade level, were:

  • 1st Grade: Grigory Kagramanov, Molly Klinetob, and Carson Myers
  • 2nd Grade: Alexander Dimashi, Grace Petrinec, and Olivia Smith
  • 3rd Grade: Caitlin Doucett, Sofia Huezo, and Khaleesi Nyanankpe
  • 4th Grade: Joey Kinch, Tamara Kulov, and Madelyn Petrinec
  • 5th Grade: Mia Gaffney, Gaebriel Hahn-Chaney, and Reese Resnick
  • 6th Grade: Matthew Coates and Caelyn Domsic
  • 7th Grade: Caedyn Hahn-Chaney and Garrett Martin
  • 8th Grade: Marcus Anderson and Gabriella Goodwin

 

 

Practice Makes Perfect for Hopeful Spelling Bee Competitors

The after-school Spelling Club got underway on November 12 with 17 elementary students turning out to practice and improve their spelling skills in preparation for classroom spelling bees in January. The winners of the classroom bees will then advance to the ACS 1st-8th Grade Spelling Bee on January 27, and the winner of that Bee will compete against winners from other area public and private schools in the Scripps Regional Bee.

“The students are excited and ready to work hard to earn that special title of Spelling Bee Champion,” said Spelling Club Advisor Jessica Martin, who also oversees the school’s Spelling Bee in February. Martin said the students are reviewing and practicing spelling words from lists provided by the Scripps National Spelling Bee.  To practice, they play games like Boggle and Lexicon, and are learning to differentiate between homophones.

The club meets on Thursday afternoons for five weeks this fall and then will meet for a second round in the winter to give the winners of the class spelling bees an opportunity to prepare for the ACS 1st-8th Grade Spelling Bee.

Martin said the dates and format for the 2021 regional and national Scripps Spelling Bees have not yet been determined. Due to the coronavirus outbreak last spring, the 2020 regional and national bees were cancelled.