There are some instances when a single letter can really make or break the situation-specifically when it comes to spelling bees.
The Boyertown Area Times recently hosted its annual sixth grade spelling bee competitions for both Oley and Boyertown school districts. Approximately twenty students from each school district participated in each event.
At 7 p.m. Wednesday night, April 16, students and their families gathered at Boyertown Elementary to watch the district’s top sixth grade spellers to compete.
Hannah Feist, daughter of Joseph and Holly Nacarelli, took home first place. Hannah goes to New Hanover Upper Frederick Elementary.
Jocelyn Lear from Washington Elementary School, daughter of Anna Monaco-Lear and Chris Lear, took second place. New Hanover Upper Frederick Elementary School’s Alex Young, son of Kelley and Bruce Young, took third.
Nearing the end of the second round, Lear misspelled sacrilege. The word was then presented to Fiest who stated the correct spelling. Feist took first by spelling the next and last week of the evening: liaison.
In Oley, the Sixth Grade Spelling Bee at Oley Valley Middle School was held on Tuesday, April 15.
Kyle H. Olszewski son of Loretta and Louis Olszewski took home first place, followed by Ryan P. Sheetz son of Teresa Fegley and Paul Sheetz in second and Trent Heflin son of Jaclyn and Christopher Heflin in third.
In the second round, Sheetz fell to second with the word clemency-Olsewski then took first by spelling chlorine correctly.
The top three winners of each competition received a plaque. All of the Spelling Bee participants received a Webster’s Thesaurus for Students. Prior to the event, students are given practices booklets to learn the words from. The words are broken into two categories: first round and intermediate.