Spelling Bees Are Hard. But Not For This Kansas City 8th Grader

Have any of you ever participated in a Spelling Bee when you were a kid? Perhaps you did when you were in grade school, up through 8th grade.  I did.  I would say I held my own.  If any of you have ever seen the Scripps National Spelling Bee on ESPN, then you know how seriously those kids take their spelling.  Well, one Kansas City 8th grader will get his shot.

Say hello to Kai Wen Soon.  He is an 8th grade student at Plaza Middle School in Kansas City.  He has many interests and skills, including ice skating, tennis, playing piano and the violin.  Oh yeah, he is a really good speller too.  So good that he will be a part of the National Scripps Spelling Bee this year.  Apparently he is a big reader and has been in spelling bees since the 5th grade.  We may see him on TV soon.

This is the first year that he qualified for the Bee, and you can read a bit more about him and his family HERE.  He is making the trip to Washington D.C with his family and is preparing.

One of my closest friends from grade school, actually won back to back spelling bees in 3rd and 4th grade.  He still brags about it.  I once asked him how he prepared.  All he would say is that he read a lot, looked at a lot of words, and somehow he remembered them all.  I do find the show fascinating on how EVERY kid, asks for the definition, origin of the word, etc.  Surely these kids know most of the words, and perhaps are enjoying their 15 minutes of fame, and can move a little quicker than what they do.  But I am wishing Kai all the luck that he can bring the title to the Show Me State.