Texas will once again be well represented at the Scripps National Spelling Bee that is returning after the tournament was canceled last year.
Two area students are heading to Florida as finalists: Vivinsha Veduru, 10, a fifth grader from Bear Creek Intermediate School in Keller, and Dhroov Bharatia, 12, a seventh grader from Wilson Middle School in Plano.
Eleven finalists -- including two other Texans from Waco and Austin -- are competing for the top spot and to take home a $50,000 cash prize. Scripps canceled last year’s bee due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the first time it had been called off since World War II. This year is its 93rd event.
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Dhroov said he’s grateful to have made it this far in the spelling bee and is ready to show off his linguistic talent. Having a strategy is key, he stressed.
Instead of memorizing the dictionary, he looks at the roots and patterns of words. By looking at the pattern of the word, Dhroov associates it with a certain language and then uses the definition to remember how the word is spelled.
“That’s really how I study most of the difficult words,” he said. “It’s like a scene that’s blurry and the longer you look at it, it becomes more and more clear.”
For example, he said “sch” are common starting letters in the German language for words like “schnauzer” and “schadenfreude”. Dhroov uses the “sch” pattern for the base of the word and then asks for the definition to help remember the spelling.
He’s an avid reader, especially of the Harry Potter book series, where he read 650 pages of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in about six to seven hours.
“As I read more, I really became fascinated by the effects that words have and how they can describe even the most mundane aspects of the story,” he said.
Dhroov is not new to the spelling bee world, having participated in his first local competition in the fourth grade when he was 8-years-old.
At the beginning of this year’s spelling bee, Dhroov wasn’t necessarily aiming to win but to enjoy the journey.
The middle schooler’s favorite part of this experience is learning the origins or roots of words he previously didn’t know. And whenever he’s tasked with spelling a particularly difficult word, hearing the official say he did it right is a surreal feeling.
Whatever happens at the spelling bee finals this year, Dhroov said he will continue pursuing his love of words. He’s an aspiring engineer but noted that spelling is a universal skill.
“[Spelling] can be applied to everything: science, music, art,” he said. ”That’s really why I love doing spelling because I can use it in every single setting.”
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Vivinsha, 10, is the youngest speller left in the bee, but that hasn’t stopped her enthusiasm for the finals.
“I feel elated and a little nervous at the same time,” she said in an email.
The fifth grader’s strategy is to study language patterns as well as the roots of Latin and Greek words. Vivinsha’s entry point into the spelling bee world was at a Texas Christian University event where the then third grader took home third place.
After that, she started studying and researching spelling bees, which has helped her become the speller she is today.
Vivinsha -- who loves Matilda and the Harry Potter series -- said reading frequently helps in the word-meaning rounds at the bee where spellers must provide definitions. She wants to pursue a career in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, and said spelling definitely will help when she gets to that point.
Vivinsha’s excited to head to Florida and ready to compete.
“The thrill of clearing a round without hearing the bell is my favorite thing in the bee,” she said.
At the last bee in 2019, eight spellers became co-champions after competing for 20 rounds, including three from North Texas. It was the first time in the event’s 92 year history that the coveted title was shared by a group.
Where To Watch
The Scripps National Spelling Bee finals will air on ESPN 2 on July 8 from 7 to 9 p.m.
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