Post and Courier MIE :: Students :: Spellbound

School of the Arts student to stay for rest of National Spelling Bee after not advancing

• BY DIETTE COURRÉGÉ
• dcourrege@postandcourier.com
• Thursday, June 2, 2011

West Ashley's Katy LeBarron didn't do as well as she hoped in the Scripps National Spelling Bee, but she still was grateful for the experience of traveling to the nation's capital to be a part of the competition.

LeBarron, an eighth-grader at Charleston County School of the Arts, didn't score high enough to be one of the 41 students who will advance to the semifinals today in a heated contest to become the country's top speller.

"The hotel is amazing, and it's just cool to be a part of this," she said. "The people plan all year for the National Bee, and it really is an honor being here."

The 14-year-old earned her spot in the bee by winning SpellBound!, the Lowcountry's regional bee, and The Post and Courier is covering her expenses.

LeBarron was among 275 of the best spellers from across the country and world who came to Washington for the competition. On Tuesday, they took a 25-word written spelling test, and each word was worth one point. On Wednesday, the preliminaries continued with morning and evening oral rounds, and words spelled correctly were worth three points.

LeBarron misspelled both of her words in the oral rounds. She forgot the "n" in "retinopathy," a word referring to damage of the eye's retina, and she omitted the first "e" in "jadeite," the name of a mineral.

LeBarron said she knew the word "retinopathy," but the nerves that came with standing on such an intimidating stage caused her to get ahead of herself and spell it incorrectly. She said she'd never heard the word "jadeite."

The scores of the spellers going to the semifinals were so high that they would've had to correctly spell both words in the oral rounds and miss less than two on the written test.

LeBarron said she most enjoyed being able to meet so many different people, and that it's been amazing to see so many talented spellers in the same place. She plans to stay to watch the finals tomorrow and attend the award ceremonies.

When she's not spelling, LeBarron said she loves to read and play alto saxophone and softball. She also likes spending time with her turtle, Houdini, and dog, Jack.

She is the daughter of Barbara and Paul LeBarron.

Reach Diette Courrégé at 937-5546.

West Ashley eighth-grader comes out on top in SpellBound!

• BY DAVE MUNDAY
• dmunday@postandcourier.com
• Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Even in this day of text messaging and tweets, some students still know how to spell.

That was certainly the case Monday at the annual SpellBound! competition.

Fifty spelling champions from local schools faced off in Charleston Southern University's Lightsey Chapel to demonstrate they could spell better than most adults.

They were competing for a spot in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in June in Washington. The Post and Courier will pay the expenses for the winner and a parent.

Katy LeBarron of West Ashley, an eighth-grader at the Charleston County School of the Arts, came out on top. She will be one of 275 students from across the country competing in Washington on June 1-2.

ESPN, the cable sports channel, will televise the final day of competition, starting with the semifinals from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and the finals from 8:30 to 10 p.m.

"She hasn't been studying the dictionary, but she's a reader," her mother said after her victory. "We had a lot of faith in her, but she just blew our minds."

Claire Conway, a sixth-grader at Palmetto Scholars Academy, a charter school, took second place.

Conway and LeBarron went back and forth one on one for about 15 minutes before Conway finally slipped on "decrement" and LeBarron correctly spelled "stanchion" to win.

Conway said she doesn't have to decide whether to take spelling shortcuts when texting because she doesn't have a cell phone. She said she doesn't email, either.

Conway said she prepared for the competition by focusing on languages of word origins.

More than 32,000 Lowcountry students competed in district spelling bees leading up to Monday's final, Post and Courier Community Relations Manager Robie Scott said.

"Every student sitting on our stage tonight is already a winner," Scott told them as the competition started. "You can spell words that many adults have never heard of."

The 50 local finalists represented Charleston, Berkeley, Dorchester 2 and 4 and Colleton County school districts, the S.C. Public Charter School District, Schools of the Catholic Diocese and the S.C. Independent School Association.

Hard work spells victory for student

• By Diette Courrégé
• The Post and Courier
• March 6, 2009

"Menhaden," a noun meaning a marine fish, is one of those words that sixth-grader Ben Gamble always has trouble spelling.

The Pinewood Preparatory School student practiced spelling it again and again in preparation for Thursday night's Lowcountry 2009 Spellbound! Bee, and his work paid off. He correctly spelled the final word of the competition and took home the championship trophy.

He will receive an all-expense paid trip to Washington, D.C., with a parent, to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee, compliments of The Post and Courier.

"I was really nervous," he said shortly after winning. "I guess I really wanted to go to nationals. I think it's going to be a lot of fun."

More than 32,000 students from across the Lowcountry competed in spelling bees this school year, and Thursday's bee included the 50 top spellers from Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton and Dorchester county school districts, as well as Lowcountry home and private schools and the South Carolina Independent School Association.

This is the first time the SCISA has had a student who will go to the national spelling bee competition, and the night's runner-up and Gamble's good friend, fifth-grader Gilby Schultz, also attends Pinewood Prep.

Gamble has been competing in and winning spelling bees since fourth grade, and he participated in the independent school association's state bee this year. One of the words that ended his run at the state trophy - dachshund - came up again Thursday, but Gamble, whose Dad is a veterinarian, spelled it right this time. His parents, Ginny and Donnie Gamble, laughed about that moment after the competition.

The bee moved quickly, and only nine spellers remained after about an hour. Gamble was one of the night's most predictable spellers. After the pronouncer said the word, Gamble would ask for a definition - he said he does that so he slows down and doesn't make a mistake - perhaps request that it be used in a sentence and ultimately spell it correctly. He politely told the pronouncer, "Thank you," after most every word he spelled and walked back to his seat.

When only Schultz and Gamble remained, Schultz misspelled in the second round, and Gamble spelled the misspelled words and the final word - menhaden - correctly to win. He never misspelled a word.

Pinewood Preparatory English/language arts teacher, Elizabeth Kauffman, enveloped Gamble and Schultz in a hug after the competition. She's been preparing both students since October for the spelling bee, and she said both study nightly and practice after-school. "They're amazing," she gushed. "I am blown away. I'm so excited."

Gamble planned to indulge in one, maybe two, scoops of vanilla ice cream as his reward.