PHOTOGRAPHS BY SARAH PRIESTAP
STORY BY LIZ SAUCHELLI
Plainfield
“Lettuce,” Ian repeats, then pauses. “L-E-T-T-U-C-E. Lettuce.”
Ian is correct. In the audience, his first-grade classmates erupt in soft cheers of “Yessss!”
Ian was one of eight first-graders, 12 second-graders, six third-graders and seven fourth-graders who participated in Plainfield Elementary School’s annual spelling bee on Tuesday.
“It’s completely by choice, if they were willing to get up in front of their peers and take the chance,” said Laura Spratt, a third- and fourth-grade teacher who has organized the bee the last two years.
Before the event, students set up four neat rows of chairs in front of the gym’s metal bleachers, which seemed to echo with the slightest touch. As they worked, the students exchanged excited conversations that all seemed to begin, “How do you spell …?”
Once the chairs were arranged and the participants — armed with whiteboards, markers and erasers — were seated, Spratt went over the rules. The first: Keep the markers capped until it’s your turn. The second: When it’s your turn, you can ask for the definition of the word and to have it used in a sentence. The third: Once you start spelling a word, you can’t go back and re-spell it differently.
The participants nodded.
“Everyone up here is taking a risk, a really big educational risk,” Spratt told the students, before reminding them to be respectful of one another. That wasn’t a problem. Those who weren’t participating gathered on the bleachers, along with teachers, support staff and parents who came to watch. Each round was met with applause as those who got words wrong rejoined their classmates.
Spratt tries to adhere to the Scripps National Spelling Bee rules, with allowances for the age group. Throughout the bee, Spratt gently reminded children to speak up, repeat the word after they spelled it and sometimes asked to see the spelling of words that were written on participants’ whiteboards if they mumbled the answers.
For many of the students, this was their first spelling bee and Spratt aimed to make it accessible. She starts with words that have short vowel sounds that the first-graders have already studied. Then she moves on to long vowels, and so on.
“We purposely put them in the order of how we teach phonics and how we teach spelling,” Spratt explained.
After nine rounds, the bee was put on pause as the school day concluded. The remaining nine competitors met again on Thursday to continue the bee in the library.
Although the audience was reminded to stay quiet, bits of encouragement could be overheard: “You can do it!” one student said said in what was supposed to be a whisper.
When one of the spellers is eliminated, members of the class sigh “noooo,” drawing out the “o.” But that brief moment of despair is followed by encouragement: “It’s OK.”
After 14 rounds, third-grader Nina Ellingson and fourth-grader Sophie Longacre remained. They went back and forth, rapidly spelling words — “multiplication,” and then “nostril,” which prompted giggles — before Nina missed “fierce.” Then Sophie spelled “guess” and “hour” to take the win, her third in a row.
The spelling bee, Spratt said, teaches more than just spelling. There’s public speaking. There’s confidence getting in front of peers. And there’s dealing with disappointment.
“I think learning how to lose graciously is a good lesson to learn,” Spratt said.
Lucky for the students at Plainfield Elementary School, even if they lose, their peers are there to cheer them on.
Sarah Priestap can be reached at spriestap@vnews.com or 603-727-3230. Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.