8/8/2019 Watertown Education Foundation to Host First Townwide Spelling Bee http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/watertown-education-foundation-to-host-ﬁrst-townwide-spelling-bee 1/1 Watertown Education Foundation to host first townwide spelling bee By Laura Paine Wicked Local Watertown Posted Jan 17, 2011 @ 12:30 PM WATERTOWN — Elementary school students are buzzing about the first townwide spelling bee next month. The event, sponsored by the Watertown Education Foundation, will invite students in grades 2-5 to compete in groups of three at the Watertown Middle School to take the title of spelling bee champs within their grade level. WEF Member Amy Donohue said the students will compete in groups of three by spelling a word, writing it down and then spelling it aloud for a panel of judges. The teams will keep spelling until there is only one team left. “They have to work together,” Donohue said. “It’s just for fun. This is a healthy competitive thing that I am hoping to encourage. It’s one of those non-intense, one person stands up and spells the word type of thing.” Donohue said that she thinks this is a good way to raise money for the WEF and to keep kids actively involved and interested in their education. Children participating in the Feb. 13 spelling bee will pay a $20 entrance fee, due Jan. 21, and raffle tickets will be sold at the event. The winner will receive an iPad. “I thought the spelling be would be a positive way to encourage healthy competition and enthusiasm around learning vocabulary and spelling for our community,” she said. “I wanted to involve students, parents and teachers. I believe we all benefit from the education foundation. I thought this would be a great idea.” Hosmer Elementary School PTO Member Lorenna Moynihan has been working with Donohue to set up the spelling bee and coinciding t-shirt contest. Students were asked to come up with a design for the spelling bee as a way to get kids talking about the event. The winner of the contest was Cunniff Elementary School fifth grader Katherine Lawn. “I think it was really helpful to get kids interested in what this would mean, something coming down the pike for them to get interested in and to talk about,” Moynihan said. “It’s that badge of honor saying, ‘I won for my grade and I spelled this many words correctly.’ I think it is motivating to kids.” Moynihan said the bee is a way for kids to compete beyond sports. “This is a way for them to show off their skills in an academic way,” Moynihan said. “There are some kids whose strong suit just isn’t athletics. They can prove to their classmates and themselves that they have something that is extraordinary and something to be proud of.” Donohue has also scheduled a showing of showing Akeelah and the Bee, the tale of a girl from South Los Angeles who tries to get into the National Spelling Bee, at the Watertown Public Library on Jan. 18 at 1:30 p.m. She is hoping to will teach children what a spelling bee is and help make the main event a big success. “My hope is to have a successful first spelling bee for the children in Watertown and we can run this year after year,” she said. Laura Paine can be reached at [email protected]. Copyright 2011 Watertown TAB & Press. Some rights reserved

Watertown Education Foundation to Host First Townwide Spelling Bee

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8/8/2019 Watertown Education Foundation to Host First Townwide Spelling Bee

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Watertown Education Foundation to host first townwide spellingbee

By Laura Paine Wicked Local WatertownPosted Jan 17, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

WATERTOWN — Elementary school students are buzzing about the first townwidespelling bee next month.

The event, sponsored by the Watertown Education Foundation, will invite students ingrades 2-5 to compete in groups of three at the Watertown Middle School to take the title of spelling bee champs within their grade level.

WEF Member Amy Donohue said the students will compete in groups of three by spelling aword, writing it down and then spelling it aloud for a panel of judges. The teams will keepspelling until there is only one team left.

“They have to work together,” Donohue said. “It’s just for fun. This is a healthy competitivething that I am hoping to encourage. It’s one of those non-intense, one person stands up andspells the word type of thing.”

Donohue said that she thinks this is a good way to raise money for the WEF and to keepkids actively involved and interested in their education. Children participating in the Feb. 13spelling bee will pay a $20 entrance fee, due Jan. 21, and raffle tickets will be sold at theevent. The winner will receive an iPad.

“I thought the spelling be would be a positive way to encourage healthy competition andenthusiasm around learning vocabulary and spelling for our community,” she said. “I wantedto involve students, parents and teachers. I believe we all benefit from the educationfoundation. I thought this would be a great idea.”

Hosmer Elementary School PTO Member Lorenna Moynihan has been working withDonohue to set up the spelling bee and coinciding t-shirt contest. Students were asked tocome up with a design for the spelling bee as a way to get kids talking about the event. Thewinner of the contest was Cunniff Elementary School fifth grader Katherine Lawn.

“I think it was really helpful to get kids interested in what this would mean, somethingcoming down the pike for them to get interested in and to talk about,” Moynihan said. “It’sthat badge of honor saying, ‘I won for my grade and I spelled this many words correctly.’ Ithink it is motivating to kids.”

Moynihan said the bee is a way for kids to compete beyond sports.“This is a way for them to show off their skills in an academic way,” Moynihan said.

“There are some kids whose strong suit just isn’t athletics. They can prove to their classmatesand themselves that they have something that is extraordinary and something to be proud of.”

Donohue has also scheduled a showing of showing Akeelah and the Bee, the tale of a girlfrom South Los Angeles who tries to get into the National Spelling Bee, at the WatertownPublic Library on Jan. 18 at 1:30 p.m. She is hoping to will teach children what a spellingbee is and help make the main event a big success.

“My hope is to have a successful first spelling bee for the children in Watertown and wecan run this year after year,” she said.

Laura Paine can be reached at [email protected] 2011 Watertown TAB & Press. S ome rights reserved