{"id":1244751,"date":"2026-02-16T17:34:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T22:34:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/?p=1244751"},"modified":"2026-02-16T18:06:36","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T23:06:36","slug":"dc-spelling-bee-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/dc-spelling-bee-competition\/","title":{"rendered":"D.C. Students Kick Off 44th Annual Spelling Bee Season"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

More than 260 of the top spellers from 88 public, private and charter schools in Washington, D.C., took to Town Hall Education Arts Recreation Campus (THEARC) to compete for 30 final spots in the upcoming Washington Informer Citywide Spelling Bee this spring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although about 11% of the students made it to the next round, and only one person will represent the District in the nationwide Scripps National Spelling Bee<\/a> in May, the annual competition highlights something far beyond winning.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Jason Moore breaks down the rules to students during the Feb. 11 Cluster Bees at THEARC in Southeast D.C. The winners of the Cluster Bees, held Feb. 11-13, go on to the 44th annual Washington Informer Spelling Bee this spring. (Demarco Rush\/Washington Informer)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cI was a teacher early in my career for 15 years, [so] it is my absolute favorite thing to work with students and families to see what excellence is and show, not how easy it is to attain it, but how attainable it is,\u201d Jason Moore, the competition\u2019s coordinator said during the Cluster Bees on Feb. 11. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Moore, the focus is not about who wins or loses, but that students build skills and learn life lessons. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I see kids come in and do the spelling bee, I always tell them, look at this fun, weird skill that you have that people will reward and it’s because you showed up, you volunteered, you participated, and you said yes,\u201d he told The Informer. \u201cNo matter how nervous or frightened they are, they\u2019re pushing through their fear and nerves, and that is about the best life lesson a child can get.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A former educator like Moore, Cynthia Ajuzie, one of the four judges working the competition said she volunteered in order to get a \u201cchance to interact with students,\u201d particularly because she no longer has a position that directly works with young people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now working with the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) Office of Teaching and Learning, Ajuzie enjoyed seeing students support one another during the competition, building a sense of camaraderie and unity overall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think it’s cool seeing the subtle ways that the kids are encouraging each other,\u201d she told The Informer. \u201cYou can tell that everyone is rooting for each other.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although she did not advance to the next round, Caiyah Floyd, a student from Browne Education Campus, was one of the students just happy to see her fellow students succeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had a good time [competing] in the spelling bee,\u201d she said, \u201cbecause I knew that even if I didn’t win, at least one of my best friends would win and get an opportunity to go to the next [round].\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For judge Christina Rodriguez, volunteering with the Cluster Bees not only allows her to give back, but tap into something that brought her joy in her youth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs a kid, I loved spelling bees and I\u2019m a very big reading and literacy person, so I was really excited to be asked to judge and support our students who are passionate about language, spelling and reading in general,\u201d Rodriguez, DCPS elementary and social studies manager, told The Informer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘Study a Lot and Be Confident<\/strong>‘<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Caiyah knew the road to the Clusters and then Citywide Spelling Bee would not be easy, but she worked to be as prepared as possible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was kind of hard because there were 4,000 words to [study from],\u201d she told The Informer at THEARC on Feb. 11, “but if you actually memorized your words and practiced every day, it [made it easier].\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many students like Caiyah spent months studying for their school competitions and the Cluster Bees.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Parents, teachers and guardians watch students compete in the Cluster Bees at THEARC on Feb. 11, ahead of the 44th annual Washington Informer Spelling Bee. (Demarco Rush\/Washington Informer)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

While she was eliminated Feb. 11, Quinn Koester, a student from Hearst Elementary, is already looking forward to competing in next year\u2019s bee. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI got out on \u2018concierge.\u2019 I was trying to follow the rule that my sister [taught me], \u2018i before e except after c,\u2019\u201d she said, \u201cbut it turns out there’s hundreds of different variations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With this year\u2019s bee under her belt, Quinn offered advice for students who decide to participate in the future. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCelebrate yourself on the words that you get right,\u201d she told The Informer. “Don’t get mad at yourself for the words you got wrong, and if you do get something wrong, just try again next year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Quinn geared up for this year\u2019s competition, she worked alongside her schoolmate Maia Elliott, who also participated in the Cluster Bees. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe studied together every Tuesday because we’re from the same school,\u201d she told The Informer. \u201cThere was also a lot of mental preparation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although she didn\u2019t make it to the spring matchup, where 30 District spellers will showcase their skills, Maia learned a lot from participating in the Cluster Bees, noting there\u2019s a special science to navigating the competition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy advice is to really take your time and break [the words] down,\u201d she said. \u201cStudy a lot and be confident because if you’re questionable, [you\u2019ll] have a lot of nerves.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Over 260 students from 88 schools in Washington, D.C., competed in the annual Citywide Spelling Bee, with the goal of qualifying for the Scripps National Spelling Bee in May, while the focus was on building skills and learning life lessons.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4426,"featured_media":1244748,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"_primary_brand":0,"_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","nota_seo_page_title":"Cluster Bees: D.C. students spell their way to victory","nota_seo_page_description":"Top spellers from Washington, D.C., compete in the annual Washington Informer Citywide Spelling Bee, focusing on skill-building and life lessons.","newspack_featured_image_position":"small","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30817,30818],"tags":[88611,88609,1579,88608,43683,900,72091,165,80102,88612,88610,32328,32243],"brand":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"nota":[],"coauthors":[72011],"class_list":["post-1244751","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","category-education","tag-caiyah-floyd","tag-christina-rodriguez","tag-community","tag-cynthia-ajuzie","tag-dc-spelling-bee","tag-dcps","tag-demarco-rush","tag-education","tag-jason-moore","tag-maia-elliott","tag-quinn-koester","tag-scripps-national-spelling-bee","tag-spelling-bee","entry"],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\nCluster Bees: D.C. students spell their way to victory - The Washington Informer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Top spellers from Washington, D.C., compete in the annual Washington Informer Citywide Spelling Bee, focusing on skill-building and life lessons.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/dc-spelling-bee-competition\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"D.C. 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