Laura Newcombe, the local spelling whiz is at it again. She and two other Canadian kids, will be competing this week in Washington at the well-known Scripps National Spelling Bee. Laura, 12, will be in a contest with 272 other spellers from all over the world. The other Canadian bee keepers are Veronica Penny from Rockland and Graham Abraham, from Kamloops. The first round of the Scripps bee will begin Tuesday with a 25-word written test. On Wednesday, all the spellers will compete onstage in rounds two and three. Only a maximum of 50 young students will be declared semifinalists and move on to the championship rounds scheduled Sunday. This will be the third time Newcombe is representing Canada at the Washington bee. She has also won the Postmedia Canspell competition three years in a row. Laura says this visit has been bittersweet because it will be her last chance to be crowned top bee at the competition. Newcombe is going to high school next year and will no longer be eligible for both bees. “I think I’m a bit more nervous this year,” she said. Laura is in Washington with her mom and dad. Good luck Laura! We all wish Laura Newcombe good luck
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Laura Newcombe, the local spelling whiz is at it again. She and two other Canadian kids, will be competing this week in Washington at the well-known Scripps National Spelling Bee. Laura, 12, will be in a contest with 272 other spellers from all over the world. The other Canadian bee keepers are Veronica Penny from Rockland and Graham Abraham, from Kamloops. The first round of the Scripps bee will begin Tuesday with a 25-word written test. On Wednesday, all the spellers will compete onstage in rounds two and three. Only a maximum of 50 young students will be declared semifinalists and move on to the championship rounds scheduled Sunday. This will be the third time Newcombe is representing Canada at the Washington bee. She has also won the Postmedia Canspell competition three years in a row. Laura says this visit has been bittersweet because it will be her last chance to be crowned top bee at the competition. Newcombe is going to high school next year and will no longer be eligible for both bees. “I think I’m a bit more nervous this year,” she said. Laura is in Washington with her mom and dad. Good luck Laura! 