Can you spell “prestidigitation”? Yeah, me neither. But that is what separates us mere mortals from the incredible children participating in the annual Scripps National Spelling Bee. This year something was a little different from years past: the youngest speller was six years old.
That’s right, folks. Edith Fuller, from Tulsa, Oklahoma, is one of only 291 spellers who took the stage to compete in the Bee. The contest begins with about 11 million students, and ends with the final 291 in the nationally televised event. And Edith, the youngest to ever make it this far, actually qualified when she was a five year old!
According to Scary Mommy,
Edith Fuller, from Tulsa, Oklahoma, is the youngest-ever Bee competitor. “Edith Fuller is the youngest speller to ever make it to the Scripps National Spelling Bee. And so far, she’s having fun,” the UPI reported. “Edith competed in her first spelling bees this year, she said, and was surprised to keep winning. But she did. And she loves to spell. She’s speller 290 of 291, so she has a long wait before she gets to the microphone.”
According to ABC News, Edith also “plays piano and sings in her church’s children’s choir,” in her spare time…
Edith Fuller #290 coming up soon on WatchESPN! #spellingbee #edithfuller pic.twitter.com/xNDExAUx6O
— Bryan Jaroch (@Bryan_Jaroch) May 31, 2017
The spelling bee participants (the oldest of whom is 15 years old) all receive a Kindle Paperwhite, as well as a yearlong subscription to Merriam-Webster. The lucky (talented) winner also gets $40,000 and other prizes. Not too shabby, huh?
If you want to see how you compare to the tiny brainiacs who kick some serious spelling bee-hinds (sorry, couldn’t help it…), you can take the Scripps test. Do you think you could make it to that stage?
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