Did your class spelling bee activate a bundle of nerves in your stomach? That’s not an issue for Elise Cournoyer, an eighth grader at Camels Hump Middle School in Richmond.
Elise, who won the Vermont Spelling Bee in March, was one of 56 semifinalists competing Wednesday in the Scripps National Spelling Bee, and the only Vermonter on the stage in the nation’s capital.
While some students prepare for the competition during class time and through private tutoring, for Elise, spelling bees are an extracurricular pastime, one of many in her life.
“I have a lot of other things I do, like dance and writing and running,” Elise said Wednesday evening.
In the spelling pastime, Elise certainly excels: This is her second consecutive year to visit Washington for the Scripps competition. Last year, she tied for 135th place, according to the Scripps website. This year, however, the competition felt different to Elise.
“I’ve been able to build more relationships with the other spellers, like, and sit next to the same people longer and give high-fives to the same people for a longer time. So I’ve definitely felt more connected to everybody than last year,” Elise said after the semifinal round.
Elise was eliminated from the national competition in the sixth round of the semifinals on Wednesday, after misspelling the word “rhamnaceae.” The word, with roots in Greek and Latin, refers to a group of plants including shrubs and trees, according to the judges’ definition given to Elise.
Spellers have 90 seconds to ask questions about the word and then spell it. If they misspell the word, a bell rings and their time at the competition ends. Middle-schoolers have the option to ask about the word’s linguistic origin, many of which have roots in Greek and Latin.
“I’ve noticed words that I don’t know and I’ve been able to decipher them with my root knowledge and language origin college that I’ve obtained from studying for the spelling bee,” Elise said about tricky words.
Only three spellers from Elise’s round advanced to the next round of the competition: the final round of the Scripps Bee.
When Elise misspelled the word, head judge Mary Brooks had only kind words for the eighth grader.
“I know this is your second and final bee, but everything you’ve done up to this point has been incredible to watch,” Brooks told her. Every semifinalist in the competition receives a commemorative medal and a $500 gift card, according to the competition’s site.
For Elise, the competition may be over, but the experience has given her more than the knowledge of a few words.
“Whatever happens, people who go to the National Spelling Bee have learned to build up a really good work ethic and we’ve gotten great literary skills that’ll help us through all of our lives, no matter how well we do in the competition,” Elise said.
VTDigger sponsored Elise in the Scripps Spelling Bee.