Popular Post RegGuheert Posted May 24, 2015 Popular Post Share Posted May 24, 2015 Joe Heim at the Washington Post wrote a very nice piece on our family along with a few other serial-spelling-bee families. We were excited to hear we made the front page of the Sunday edition this week! But then people started to comment on the article. :glare: Here are a few selected negative comments: found this kind of sad. studying how to spell for 6 hours a day is borderline cray cray. and when you are done, you have accomplished what? sorry, take 5.5 hours of those 6 and run around outside, dream, paint, or get a job. Rote learning is a thing of the past. This is sad, even pathetic. Focusing 6 hours a day on spelling words is an addiction and obsession--and sacrifices far too much in the way of real learning and overall development. Alas, what's involved here is NOT learning. It gives homeschooling a bad name. I guess I should grow thicker skin if we are going to be in the media, but I really have to wonder about some of these comments. Studying spelling may not be for everyone, but when someone claims that it is NOT learning, I think there is a major issue. Frankly, we have been amazed at how the preparation for these spelling bees has benefited our children. MomsintheGarden is a firm believer in the idea of "stretching" the brain through concentrated study. I have to admit, I believe she is correct. At the end of the day, I have to conclude that this is partially related to the fact that Indian-American children have won the last seven National Spelling Bees and 12 of the last 16 competitions. I'm guessing that members of that community do not decry the hard work of their competitors as something that gives their community a bad name. On the contrary, I think they are rightfully proud of the accomplishments of their offspring. Anyway, we look forward to the bee each year, whether or not we have a competitor there. If you are in the Washington DC area, we encourage you to come and watch the competition. It is free to attend, but space is limited for the finals on Thursday night. If you are not local, then you may enjoy watching the competition on ESPN3 (preliminaries on Wednesday), ESPN2 (semifinals on Thursday morning and early after noon) and ESPN on Thursday evening at primetime. Here is the competition schedule. DS13 is on the edge of making the semifinals this year. It could go either way, and he will certainly be disappointed if he does not advance. He's not yet at the level of being able to make the finals. Perhaps next year. If you do come, please introduce yourselves! (We look a lot like the people in the pictures in the article!) 62 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Catwoman Posted May 24, 2015 Popular Post Share Posted May 24, 2015 NEVER ,EVER, EVER READ THE COMMENTS!!!!! There are some people who seemingly do nothing all day but troll around and post mean things in the comments section of online news articles. Pay no attention to them. I am sorry people posted such hurtful comments. :grouphug: 67 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Spelling was never a major focus of our homeschool. However, we focused on stuff someone else might find of no value. The important thing is the value to your dc. I would be upset if the comments were targeted at me, but I've noticed people who comment tend to say the meanest things. I don't know why it's ok to insult people this way, but that seems to be sole purpose of newspaper article comments. IOW don't read the comments, those people are stupid and mean. 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katy Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Aww, congratulations on raising amazing kids who would rather do something productive with their time than troll sites posting hateful comments, watch tv, or play video games all day!. I'd say the very fact that your family offended those hateful jerks is a sign you're doing things right. 19 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegGuheert Posted May 24, 2015 Author Share Posted May 24, 2015 Aww, congratulations on raising amazing kids who would rather do something productive with their time than troll sites posting hateful comments, watch tv, or play video games all day! Well, certainly some of them would rather play video games all day... :tongue_smilie: 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Sometimes the worst poor losers are people who didn't even bother to get in the game. You will see it in music, sports, writing, science, home making and just about anything else. The only way they can be happy about their lack is by bringing the achievements of others down. It's sad. Congratulations and keep on keeping on doing what works for your family and that your family is passionate about. I think it's great. :) 25 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 I agree. Do not read the damn comments. I've read some insanely nasty comments on stuff that I just could not imagine in 100,000 years someone could find something negative to say about it. It was completely mundane stuff. Some people just get off on being a-holes. 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 We only went one year but dd walked away saying that the group of spellers she met were one of the most interesting groups of kids she had ever been with. They had so many different interests (not just spelling!) and had such high aspirations for their future. She also liked how the kids seemed to be pretty close to their parents, which isn't always something you see with young teens (she was 13 when she went so she mostly hung around other kids her age). Kind of frustrating - if you were raising a family where all the kids were exceptional athletes nobody would whine that they're spending too much time on sports. We'll be watching and rooting for your boy!! 18 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mimm Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Don't read the comments. No matter what you're doing, people will tear it down. I don't know why. Jealousy? Just plain meanness? Who knows. Spelling isn't our thing, but you guys have fun doing your thing and be proud of your kids. :) 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegGuheert Posted May 24, 2015 Author Share Posted May 24, 2015 We only went one year but dd... If that was your 22yo, then perhaps we were there the same year: 2006. If it was one of your older daughters, then you predated us. We only went one year but dd walked away saying that the group of spellers she met were one of the most interesting groups of kids she had ever been with. They had so many different interests (not just spelling!) and had such high aspirations for their future. Yes, it is an amazing, eclectic group! She also liked how the kids seemed to be pretty close to their parents, which isn't always something you see with young teens (she was 13 when she went so she mostly hung around other kids her age). What amazes me is how the children (almost always) support each other. While they do compete against each other, they all realize that the REAL competition is that dictionary. Even the winner of the National Spelling Bee typically misses some of the words during the competition. (Sometimes in verbal rounds, but many people do not know that often the winner has missed one or more words during the all-important written test on Tuesday morning.) Kind of frustrating - if you were raising a family where all the kids were exceptional athletes nobody would whine that they're spending too much time on sports. We had that thought, too. And several of the commenters suggested that sports would be a much better use of time. We'll be watching and rooting for your boy!! Thanks! If he makes the semi-finals, he will have met his goal. But to my knowledge, no one from our region has ever advanced to the semi-finals during their first trip to the bee. (You may remember what it was like when they announce the competitors who are advancing to the semi-finals: lots of tears.) 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Do not read the comments ever. You are lucky that is all you saw. I have seen some of the most vile and disgusting things ever in that sewer! Now, I only read comments on the NYT because at least it is clean. I may not agree with what I read, but I have never seen anything racist or violent..or worse. And congrats to you! I am super impressed 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Congratulations to you and your family! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinder Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Great article--I enjoyed reading it. Thanks for sharing and congrats to all your spelling champs! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gil Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Are you familiar with the term "haters"? It probably isn't in Websters 3rd so I will just tell you the definition ha-ter (n): A spiteful person who will not refrain from actively tearing down or belittling another who works to accomplish something such as a dream or a goal with their own personal time. See: bigotted, spiteful.. Haters are essentially bigoted against driven people and are very draining to deal with. So don't deal with them. You don't have to grow a thicker skin, you have disregard them utterly. If your kids were singers and the article said they sang for hours each day, no one would care. If your kids were athletes and the article said they practiced for hours each day, no one would care. All of those people would be singing their praises and talking about how wonderful it is to follow your passion but what they would really mean is "how wonderful it is (for me) that you have a passion that *I* value." Screw them. Focus on yourself and your kids and do your thing. You have no reason to care about your haters do or do not do value about your childrens work ethic. 18 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammyla Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Comments are often made to be provocative and shocking enough for the poster to get a rise out commenting without being deleted. I agree with the others, congratulations and try to ignore the donkey-bums. So many people post without thinking, because it's just so easy. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imagine.more Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 I write a silly little blog on our family and home organization kinda topics, whatever I feel like really. Once I posted about the movie Frozen and sarcastically listed 7 ways Tangled was a better movie/how Frozen could have been better. Totally just goofing off and venting about a silly Disney movie my kids were obsessed with. Someone called me brain dead or something and said they felt sorry for my kids that I wouldn't even let them watch an innocent movie because I didn't like it. (funny thing was my kids were watching it as I read that comment). It was ridiculous, I think they must have barely read my article, decided they didn't like it, and went on a rampage. So yeah, people will post hatefully about just about anything. And like others said above if someone is actually out there accomplishing something (like winning spelling competitions and having fun) then the lazy non-starters are even more likely to come out of the woods and try to bring them down. 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hikin' Mama Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Congratulations! I think your kids' accomplishments are awesome! IGNORE the comments. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 I have a natural speller who has been a spelling bee fixture since 3rd grade. Our regionals are pretty competitive and alas he has not made it to nationals yet. He has 2 more years of eligibility and he studies spelling diligently. There's nothing rote about it. It's an exploration of language and of culture. He's a voracious reader with a great vocabulary. Recently we took him in for a study intake appointment and they were doing someo sort of IQ and achievement testing. They told us to plan to be there an hour and a half but didn't mention that was the day for the testing. Well towards the 3 hour mark we are waiting and waiting. Then the study assistant comes out and says, well we are just going to be another 10-15 minutes. Turns out what was taking so long was vocabulary testing because they keep going to see how far he would go and he just wasn't missing enough questions to stop the test. They wanted to know how he had such a vocabulary and I was like "two words: spelling bee". :P Another great thing is that it's something that can be challenging no matter how talented you are and there are no short cuts. My son has learned so much about persistence, hard work, winning graciously and accepting defeat gracefully from the spelling bee program. People who think it's pointless and rote nonsense have no idea what they are talking about! 25 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 And congrats to your family! We aren't close enough to come to the bee but hopefully we will be there next year or the year after. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Tick Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 NEVER ,EVER, EVER READ THE COMMENTS!!!!! There are some people who seemingly do nothing all day but troll around and post mean things in the comments section of online news articles. Pay no attention to them. I am sorry people posted such hurtful comments. :grouphug: I totally agree with Cat. We've had to make tours a rule for my dh, the comments can really get him riled up. Who has that kind of free time to be making all these comments?? I've got some laundry they could fold. The spelling bee sounds like a neat thing! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Aww, I'm sorry. Haters gonna hate. MomsintheGarden is a total delight, having met her in person. Call me glad there are still homeschoolers who attempt greatness. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gil Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Also, you are a better person than me because I simply can NOT take seriously any person who uses the term 'cray-cray'. Especially if they are using it while earnestly commenting on a well-written article in a respected newspaper such as the Washington Post. 19 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura in CA Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Congratulations!!! And yes, don't listen to anyone. A homeschooled kid from our local friend-group won the national spelling bee a few years ago. He is graduating from Harvard this month and will be a Churchill Scholar at Cambridge next year, and then move on to Princeton. "Rote learning," indeed! :glare: Oh, after winning the spelling bee, he came in second in the world at the IMO with a near-perfect score, on a grueling multiday exam that (I'm sure most people on this board know) tests creative problem-solving. Anyway, best wishes to your son, this year and next! How exciting! 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigMamaBird Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Phoey on those people! We just had our State homeschool conference and I went to a great workshop on Spelling and the Brain given by Andrew Pudewa. It was extremely interesting and he had some very compelling things to say about the importance of the study of Spelling. Haters gonna hate. Shake it off. :laugh: 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Also, you are a better person than me because I simply can NOT take seriously any person who uses the term 'cray-cray'. Especially if they are using it while earnestly commenting on a well-written article in a respected newspaper such as the Washington Post. Oh, I can totally use the word cray cray. Hating on the bee be for cray cray losers. 17 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gil Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Oh, I can totally use the word cray cray. Hating on the bee be for cray cray losers. :rofl: I stand corrected. :lol: 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yucabird Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 I read the article this morning, and it put a smile on my face! Please don't pay attention to the negative comments. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alice Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 I read that article this morning and now I feel like I know a celebrity! I thought it was a great article. Ignore the comments. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegGuheert Posted May 24, 2015 Author Share Posted May 24, 2015 I have a natural speller who has been a spelling bee fixture since 3rd grade. Our regionals are pretty competitive and alas he has not made it to nationals yet. He has 2 more years of eligibility and he studies spelling diligently. :grouphug: The simple fact is that being from a tough region (or state or Canada) makes it very challenging to get to the National Spelling Bee. OTOH, once a child makes it from one of those regions, they are often much better prepared than the vast majority of the other spellers. We are not from one of those regions. :tongue_smilie: We sincerely hope your son makes it next year. Can you tell us which speller is from your region? We will watch that speller this year and *perhaps* we can offer some advice how to prepare next year (unless you are in a small handful of regions which are REALLY tough). There's nothing rote about it. It's an exploration of language and of culture. He's a voracious reader with a great vocabulary. This is the kind of thing that one simply cannot know until you have been around these highly-competitive bees. It's been a real eye-opener for me. Recently we took him in for a study intake appointment and they were doing someo sort of IQ and achievement testing. They told us to plan to be there an hour and a half but didn't mention that was the day for the testing. Well towards the 3 hour mark we are waiting and waiting. Then the study assistant comes out and says, well we are just going to be another 10-15 minutes. Turns out what was taking so long was vocabulary testing because they keep going to see how far he would go and he just wasn't missing enough questions to stop the test. They wanted to know how he had such a vocabulary and I was like "two words: spelling bee". :p I don't know if vocabulary has made it into your regional bee, yet, but we now have it in both our local and regional bees. And it now plays a MAJOR role in the National Spelling Bee. Last year one of the very top favorites in the bee did not make the finals. Vocabulary was rumored to have been what made the difference. The vocabulary tests in the National Spelling Bee are EXTREMELY difficult. When your son gets to the National Spelling Bee, he should do very well. Another great thing is that it's something that can be challenging no matter how talented you are and there are no short cuts. My son has learned so much about persistence, hard work, winning graciously and accepting defeat gracefully from the spelling bee program. People who think it's pointless and rote nonsense have no idea what they are talking about! Exactly! And congrats to your family! We aren't close enough to come to the bee but hopefully we will be there next year or the year after. Thanks! We are hoping to meet you next year at the bee! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2att Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 I have a good friend whose daughter went to the finals of the national bee for a few years. She said it was an amazing experience where her daughter finally felt to be among peers, and as one of the finalists, a rock star. It did require a tremendous amount of studying, but name a competition that pits the best of the best against each other that does not. These are bright kids with a love for learning, and chances are most of them will go very very far in life. Congrats on your spellers, and enjoy the competition! Nice article, BTW! 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Congratulations ! As for the comments: :confused1: :ohmy: :eek: When one learns spelling words, one learns the meanings and nuances of the words, and how to use them properly in context. At least, that is the kind of "non-educative" method I employed with my children. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Yes, we were there in 2006- your wife took a pic of the group of homeschoolers so we probably did meet. Our dd has always loved languages and spelling was such a fun way for her to explore them. Every year she lost on a word derived from French and it drove her nuts, but she never had any desire to learn French. She is fluent in German and Japanese, and is currently studying in Kobe, with plans to spend the next few years teaching English in Asia. So I can't believe that the time she spent studying spelling didn't help her! The bee has sure changed since 2006- do you like the new way they do it? 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seasider Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Good grief. I am impressed by your family, that you have the focus and discipline to set a goal and actually work towards it. 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seasider Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Good grief. I am impressed by your family, that you have the focus and discipline to set a goal and actually work towards it. Well done. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy22alyns Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 I always tell my girls to never read comments, that people on the internet are usually stupid and mean. People tend to not "get" those of us who spend a lot of time intensively doing one particular thing, but there's nothing wrong with having a passion for something, even if you are "only" 10 or 12, or whatever. I'm sure people think we're nuts for having ODD in competitive gym, but it's not like we dragged here there so we could say we have an Olympian. *eyeroll* Congrats to you guys and good luck in the future! 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegGuheert Posted May 24, 2015 Author Share Posted May 24, 2015 Yes, we were there in 2006- your wife took a pic of the group of homeschoolers so we probably did meet. It sounds like we did! I will ask MomsintheGarden if she knows you. Our dd has always loved languages and spelling was such a fun way for her to explore them. Every year she lost on a word derived from French and it drove her nuts, but she never had any desire to learn French. She is fluent in German and Japanese, and is currently studying in Kobe, with plans to spend the next few years teaching English in Asia. So I can't believe that the time she spent studying spelling didn't help her! Haven't you heard? Spelling is only rote learning. It certainly DID NOT help her! :glare: (Seriously, that is very impressive!) It didn't help DD22, either. She's currently getting her PhD in compultational quantum chemistry. This summer she is running the summer program for undergraduate interns into the CCQC. Looking at that link, I can see she is giving two "Introduction to Quantum Chemistry" seminars this Tuesday and one "Introduction to Computational Chemistry" seminar on Wednesday. We feel so bad about forcing her to learn all those words. The guilt is overwhelming! :svengo: The bee has sure changed since 2006- do you like the new way they do it? Yes! I REALLY like the changes that Scripps has made to the National Spelling Bee. I was always so frustrated that my children could spell all these words which I had never even heard of, but they often did not know the meanings of words, even for more common words which were part of my vernacular. In addition, I also really like the addition of a written test (spelling and vocabulary) at the semi-final level to determine who makes the finals rounds in primetime. This test is cumulative with the preliminary test (also spelling and vocabulary) along with the oral spelling rounds so the spellers you see in the final round are almost-certainly the very best spellers at the bee. I think that is only fair. (And I feel this way even though it likely would have meant that DS17 would NOT have made the finals in 2011 had this new system been in place.) 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 I don't know if vocabulary has made it into your regional bee, yet, but we now have it in both our local and regional bees. And it now plays a MAJOR role in the National Spelling Bee. Last year one of the very top favorites in the bee did not make the finals. Vocabulary was rumored to have been what made the difference. The vocabulary tests in the National Spelling Bee are EXTREMELY difficult. When your son gets to the National Spelling Bee, he should do very well. Thank you so much! I will send you a PM later on with the other stuff in your post but as for vocabulary, no we don't have vocab in our regional bee yet. My son studies it though, and did even before it was added to the National Bee, because we long ago decided that if he was going to put so much time into this, he should get something out of it regardless of if he ever makes it to nationals or goes far in the nationals. This way he has real knowledge that will help him down the road. We aren't in one of the most competitive regionals but we are definitely above average. Only the first 2 rounds are from the spell it. It seems like the kids from regions where all the words are on the spell it are really not well served by that being their final qualifying bee. We haven't had a repeat winner at the regional bee in a fairly long time. It seems to usually be a 7th grader who wins here. Last year's winner, who made it to the semi finals IIRC at nationals, barely cleared the final 15 at regionals this year. The boy who won this year was second last year and has one more year of eligibility after this year so my son is hopeful. My son did very well last year, especially for a 10 year old (was in the final couple of rounds and one of the last few spelling), but was out painfully early this year when he spelled a homonym knowing full well he was making a gaffe. If not for that, he likely would have been among the last few this year too. What I love about the bee is that he left thinking "well, time to start studying for next year." No anger or sour grapes, just well managed disappointment. That's a valuable life lesson, especially on the autism spectrum. :) 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 I do think that some of the nasty comments are colored by racism. I was disgusted to come across bee videos on YouTube where people were ranting and raving about how "real Americans" don't even have a chance. That stuff makes me sick. Of course, the comments on YouTube are definitely to be avoided! 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 It didn't help DD22, either. She's currently getting her PhD in compultational quantum chemistry. This summer she is running the summer program for undergraduate interns into the CCQC. Looking at that link, I can see she is giving two "Introduction to Quantum Chemistry" seminars this Tuesday and one "Introduction to Computational Chemistry" seminar on Wednesday. We feel so bad about forcing her to learn all those words. The guilt is overwhelming! :svengo: She sounds like a slacker. I hope you've learned from that mistake and are making sure the younger kids step it up.g 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 What a neat article! Thanks for sharing the link. And best wishes to all the spellers .... Regards, Kareni 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 What a positive article! ignore the comments. And congratulations on making it to the spelling bee so many times! Best of luck! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umsami Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Congratulations! I never made it past our local classroom's spelling bee, but I admired those who did. At my school, the local newspaper spelling bee as well as, of course, the National one was a big deal. We did have a lot of Indian-American kids, but everybody thought it was great. As to the comments, yes....don't read them. Or for fun, have your kids correct spelling mistakes in them. ;) 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyofsixreboot Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Sometimes the worst poor losers are people who didn't even bother to get in the game. You will see it in music, sports, writing, science, home making and just about anything else. The only way they can be happy about their lack is by bringing the achievements of others down. It's sad. Congratulations and keep on keeping on doing what works for your family and that your family is passionate about. I think it's great. :) I have been chided for letting my kids read too much and " waste time" becoming Eagle Scouts. People deride what they cannot do. Congrats to you and yours. 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 I can't help but wonder how many of those commenting support full contact football... a major game producing so many concussions and health issues later in life. Somehow I doubt spelling has that many risks of any type associated with it, but the former is somehow more acceptable to their society than the latter. I've always wondered why... 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raptor_dad Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 After reading the article I'm a little sad the Willlet's didn't name the pig perestrokia... I think the name works on 3 levels... it was the prize winning word... perestroika is a decent example of the proverbial "putting lipstick on a pig"... and you can shorten it to Perry which would be a great pig nickname. 15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 I can't help but wonder how many of those commenting support full contact football... a major game producing so many concussions and health issues later in life. Somehow I doubt spelling has that many risks of any type associated with it, but the former is somehow more acceptable to their society than the latter. I've always wondered why... When I am taking my younger son to sports, sometimes the other parents ask what sports my older son plays and I say "his sport is spelling". I like sports and am glad to have a child and niece who are athletic, but I am also glad my older son's competitive outlet is fairly cheap and totally safe, lol. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomsintheGarden Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Thanks, everyone! I especially appreciate the advice to not read the comments. Reg, are you listening? :) We are here at the National Bee, and it is as exciting and fun as ever. Ds is hoping to make the most of it. Today we arrived and transported the huge amount of food we brought into our hotel room across the street from the Gaylord. We also went to Orientation, and ds started meeting other spellers and signing their Bee Keepers, which are fat little spiral bound autograph books. Tomorrow we go to the Memorial Day Picnic at a local park, where we'll eat hot dogs and wander around to see the heritage poultry. Ds loves poultry! Tuesday begins the competition with the Assembly and the Preliminary Test, followed by a trip to Mt. Vernon. I am very much looking forward to touring the "Landscape," as the Garden Tour is called. Wednesday are the Oral Preliminary Rounds, which take all day as they are done in two heats. Ds is in the 2nd heat, so he gets to sleep later. The Semi competitors are announced at 5 PM, just after those rounds. It is a very emotional time. Fortunately, ds is not a favorite, so he will not have an ESPN camera in his face trying to record his smile or his tears. Thursday are the Semis and Finals. They are always fun to watch, no matter if your speller makes it or not. Actually, they are probably more fun if your child is not in them! Friday is relaxing or sight-seeing, and Saturday is time to go home and pick strawberries from the garden. Reg, are you picking strawberries? 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cammie Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 WOW - SMALL WORLD!! I woke up here in Bangalore this morning, got my morning paper, read the cute story about the American family with all the Spelling Bee wins and put it away. Only to find out you are one of the HIVE?? Well - you have made it to the international news as well (check out the webiste for the Bangalore Mirror - that is the paper I read it in!) Congrats and best of luck to your family!! 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halftime Hope Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Thanks, everyone! <snip> Friday is relaxing or sight-seeing, and Saturday is time to go home and pick strawberries from the garden. Reg, are you picking strawberries? Hope you have a wonderful, invigorating, and restorative time, and I hope you enjoy the time with your guy! :-) Proud mama! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kubiac Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Phoey on those people! We just had our State homeschool conference and I went to a great workshop on Spelling and the Brain given by Andrew Pudewa. It was extremely interesting and he had some very compelling things to say about the importance of the study of Spelling. Haters gonna hate. Shake it off. :laugh: 10 points to Gryffindor for citing Taylor Swift as a source. [thumbs up] 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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