Huntington High School Spelling Bee Approaches

The Huntington High School Spelling Bee finals will be held on Thursday, February 15 in the auditorium. The event is being coordinated by the English Honor Society. A panel of faculty members will serve as judges.

Preliminary rounds will be held in English classes. Finalists from every grade will appear on stage for the final rounds. The action will play out over three periods at the end of the day.

Huntington’s English Honor Society chapter is led President Lily Tierney, Vice President Anne Tyrrell, Treasurer Kaylee Splendorio, Secretary Marley Joseph and Public Relations Coordinator Ruby Meidenman. English teachers Aimee Antorino and Helen Guarino serve as the faculty advisors.

Last year’s Huntington spelling bee was captured by then sophomore Devon St. John following an exciting battle with seniors Ryan Curran and Peter Gaal, who finished as the runners-up.

Ms. St. John captured first place after correctly spelling the word “nihilism.” Huntington English teachers John Pagano, Michael Schwendemann and Dianna Cazzolino served as the judges. The final rounds included 44 contestants in all.

“The National Spelling Bee began in 1925 when nine newspapers joined together to host a spelling bee,” according to spellingbee.com. “Little did they know that almost a century later their literacy effort would reach millions of students each year.”

Proponents of spelling bees claim they “help students improve their spelling, increase their vocabulary, learn concepts and develop correct English usage that will help them all their lives.”

Advocates also believe that “in addition to the academic benefits, students also develop important life skills that will help them as they advance in schooling and eventually to successful careers,” according to the National Spelling Bee website.

Here are comments from a small group of National Spelling Bee participants and their reason for vying in the competition:

• “It challenges me and is an awesome way to do something different and meet new people.”

• “To have the opportunity of a lifetime and to show that hard work pays off.”

• “To give pride to my family, school and my community and to inspire other kids.”

• “Spelling is fun. Can’t imagine life without it.”

The website SpellQuiz states that “while training for a spelling bee, students learn about word roots and origins. They delve deeper into understanding the meaning and grammatical function of words. In fact, a champion speller can spell a word they’ve never seen before.”

3P Learning believes spelling is important for three reasons:

• Communication: Spelling is a critical component of communication

• Literacy: Spelling and reading skills are closely related and help develop overall literacy

• Employment: Spelling quality has a direct impact on employment opportunities

“While autocorrect and spelling software has become a given in our lives, the importance of spelling hasn’t lessened – it’s actually never been more important,” according to 3P Learning.