Kids S-P-E-L-L It Out During Annual Bee

Say it. Spell it. Say it again.

Those were the basic rules during Scotch Plains' annual spelling bee, but in the heat of the moment with all eyes on them, even that was a bit too much for some contestants to remember.

Over 100 students and their parents gathered for the event sponsored by the Scotch Plains Junior Woman's Club and the Scotch Plains Recreation Department. This year's competition, which was held Tuesday night in Park Middle School's auditorium, pitted third, fourth and fifth graders against one other for the top prize — a $25 Borders gift card.

The pressure was definitely on.

Many bright young spellers made it through several rounds, but not without some trying times. Some forgot to say the word before spelling it, others slipped up when accidentally saying a letter, then trying to correct themselves.

Even one little boy who spelled "Atlantic" correctly, but forgot to say "capital A" at the beginning, was eliminated.

"You have to say it like I told you to," moderator Gail Rhein reminded the children.

Third graders went first, succeeding at words such as "follow," "count," and "loyal," but stumbling on "superior," "exist," and "pelican." In the end, third grader Auyush Sha came out on top after spelling "gentle" correctly. Patrick Dembiec was second.

Fourth and fifth graders were next, with both grades competing together. In addition to the Borders gift card, the finalists of this round also move on to the district spelling bee, which will be held in Arlington on Feb. 20. Winners from that bee then move on to the state competition on March 14.

The fourth/fifth grade match lasted a solid hour-and-a-half. Many were eliminated, but toward the end a few strong spellers just couldn't be beat.

"They're so smart we're having to move on to our challenge words," Rhein told the parents with a laugh.

It all came down to "illegible." Terrill Middle fifth grader Jordan Wallman slipped up on the final letters — ending the word with "bal". Fellow Terrill fifth grader Jonathan Shi then stepped up to the microphone with a smile and spelled the word correctly and with confidence.

The crowd broke out into cheers. 

Overall, it was a friendly competition. Wallman even reached out to give Shi a pat on the back after his success. 

The two of them, along with third place winner, Park Middle fifth grader Morgan Martinson, will meet again at the district meet on Feb. 14.