Rules and regulations – Spelling Bee 2015

General Competition Rules

1. The competition consists of three preliminary rounds, one semi-final round and one final round.

2. Every contestant gets a different word.

3. Each contestant is given 45 seconds to spell the word. The bell will be rung once on the 30th second to indicate the last 15 seconds. On the 45th second, the bell will be rung twice. If the contestant has not finished spelling the word by the 45th second, the contestant is eliminated.

4. In the preliminary rounds, each contestant spells two words. The contestant must get at least one word right to advance to the next round.

5. In the semi-final round, each contestant is given one word. If the contestant spells the word wrongly he/she is eliminated. Only contestants who spell their word correctly may advance to the final round.

6. When there are only two contestants left in the final round, the elimination procedure changes. At that point, when one contestant misspells a word, the other contestant shall be given an opportunity to spell that same word. If the second contestant spells that word correctly, plus the next word on the pronouncer’s list, then the second contestant shall be declared the champion. If one of the last two contestants and the other, after correcting the error, misspells the new word submitted to him/her, then the misspelled new word shall be given to the first contestant. If the first contestant then succeeds in correcting the error and correctly spells the next word on the list, then he/she becomes the champion. If both contestants misspell the same word, both shall continue in the contest and the one who first misspelled the word shall be given a new word to spell.

Spelling rules

1. Each participant is asked to stand before the judges. He/she is asked to pick a piece of paper (with a word written on it) from the box. The chosen word is handed to the pronouncer. 

2. The pronouncer announces the word to be spelled. He/she speaks slowly and clearly, without distorting the normal pronunciation of the word.

3. The contestant listens carefully to the pronouncer and asks for the word to be repeated if necessary.

4. The contestant is given 45 seconds to spell the word. Within that time, the contestant may ask for a sample sentence, definition and origin of the

word. If the word is not spelt within the stipulated time frame, the contestant is eliminated.

5. When the contestant is sure he/she understands the word, he/she pronounces it and spells it. The final spelling is accepted once the participant spells the word and “locks” it by repeating the word. Until the word is “locked”, contestants may respell or alter the spelling any number of times within the permitted time frame. To “lock” the word, the participant must spell the word clearly and say the word again.

6. The judge(s) determines whether or not the word was spelled correctly.

7. If the correct spelling was given, the contestant remains in the competition.

8. If the spelling was incorrect, that contestant is eliminated from the game. The judge(s) gives the correct spelling of that word. Then the pronouncer reads a new word to the next student. 

9. If a word has one or more homonyms, the pronouncer will indicate which word is to be spelled. If the listed word is not properly identified, either by defining it or using it in a sentence, any correct spelling of any homonym of the word will be accepted.