How to host a local, state or regional bee for spellers age 50+
SPELLING BEES are fun events that provide an intellectually challenging, yet social, opportunity for anyone over the age of 50.
A group of AARP members from Cheyenne, Wyoming, started the National Senior Spelling Bee in 1996. Cheyenne has remained the host city for the annual bee, which has attracted competitors from as far away as Anchorage, Alaska and Jacksonville, Florida. Spellers have ranged in age from 50 to 90+, and have come from a wide variety of backgrounds and professions.
The organizers of the AARP National Spelling Bee are proud of the Bee, and would like to encourage other community groups to host their own event prior to the national one. Towards that goal, here is a guide to setting up a local, state, or regional Bee.
Getting Started:
- Select a date on which the event can occur annually. Once “Bee season” is fixed in people’s minds, it’s best to keep it the same.
- Choose a site for the Bee. You will need a room with desks that can be separated (or large tables that allow for space between participants). Another room is also required for the scorers.
- Equipment should include a sound system with good acoustics, several copies of the dictionary (we use Merriam-Webster’s 11 th Edition Collegiate) for the judges, pencils, paper, and perhaps water and/or snacks.
- Words are selected prior to the event by a committee using the official dictionary. You will need approximately 250 words (with definitions, pronunciations, language of origin, part of speech and a sample sentence) – 100 for the written rounds, and the rest for the oral rounds. A sample of the words we have used is online at www.aarp.org/spellingbee.
- Publicity for the Bee should include posters (at the library, Senior Center, coffee shops, health clubs, and other gathering places), newspaper announcements, public service announcements for radio and TV stations (don’t forget local cable and public access channels!) and calendar listings on community Web sites.
- Registration may be handled by mail, e-mail, phone, or a combination of those options. There is essential information you will want to gather about each speller, and you can feel free to create a registration form similar to ours (www.aarp.org/spellingbee). You will need to decide if you want to have a registration fee (we do). Someone (or a group of people) would need to be responsible for phone-in registrations – perhaps a volunteer at the Senior Center!
- Rules should be printed and made available to all participants at the time they register (please see ours at www.aarp.org/spellingbee).
- Volunteers are an important part of any Bee. You will need a word list committee, a pronouncer with clear diction, scorers (we use about one for every three spellers), judges, someone to keep a list of registrants and send them information prior to the event and update them on any changes, and a greeter/host to direct the spellers, make sure that everyone has a copy of the rules and, perhaps, organize a snack.
- Budget is, of course, one of the most important items. In addition to giving 1 st, 2 nd, and 3 rd place awards, we also give small gifts like pencils, pens or local treats, and certificates of participation to all spellers. Depending on the location, you may need to rent tables, chairs, audio equipment and perhaps pay a room rental fee, provide bottled water, coffee and/or snacks, and you might consider providing lunch for volunteers who are unable to leave the premises for a break. You may be able to get the facility, some items and services donated, and/or raise money through corporate, individual, or municipal donations, or by charging a registration fee.
Bee Weekend:
- Friday night is when we hold a “Get Acquainted” reception for all registered spellers and their guests. We provide coffee and dessert and do a few “warm-up” word games and a “fun” practice bee that’s open to contestants, their family members and friends (if you do the same, be careful not to use words from the official bee).
- Saturday’s schedule includes a full-day of activities. The morning’s preliminary spelling competition consists of four written rounds of 25 words each. The score sheets for each round are collected immediately after the round ends. This gives the scorers time to mark the sheets during subsequent rounds and lunch. After lunch, the top 15 competitors, plus any ties if there are any, advance to the oral rounds. Oral rounds continue until there is a winner (who has misspelled fewer than three words).
Please feel free to “borrow” our rules and word lists or make up your own. The key is to plan ahead, stick to your rules and above all, have fun! Good spelling.
This guide was originally produced in March 2007, and updated in October 2008. For additional questions, please email [email protected] or call AARP Wyoming at 1-866-663-3290.
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