Keller 6th-grader ready to conquer dictionary in return trip to National Spelling Bee
Vivinsha Veduru is undergoing a resurrection of the success she had last year, and hoping for even better ripostes this time.
In fact, it’s becoming a regular recurrence, and with it could come a nice recompense.
Whatever word you use for it, the 11-year-old sixth-grader from Keller’s Bear Creek Intermediate School is returning to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C. The competition is scheduled for May 31-June 2.
Last year, she was the youngest of the finalists who advanced to compete at Walt Disney World’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando, Florida. She finished tied for fourth.
”Prior experience of National Spelling Bee participation will help me to better handle competition pressure and time management on the stage,” Veduru said, adding that while she’s now a veteran, everyone starts from scratch when the event gets underway.
”Your previous ranking does not matter in this year’s competition,” she said. “You will start your preparation at ground level and have to work your way up through many levels of competition. One incorrect letter at any level is the end of your Bee journey for that year.”
Also, it’s all against all. There are no age or grade brackets. Participants cannot be older than 14 as of Aug. 31 of the year before the competition, nor can they be past the eighth grade as of Feb. 1 of that year’s competition. Previous champions are also ineligible to compete.
”I feel the competition is always against the dictionary and not against each other, as you get out only by spelling your word wrong,” Veduru said. “Every competitor at the Bee is cheering fellow spellers, and that is my favorite thing about spelling bees.”
Making history like her role models
Veduru qualified for a return to the national Bee by repeating as regional champion at TCU in March. Now, she and her family (her little sister and parents) are heading to D.C., where the event was held for many years prior to being canceled in 2020 because of COVID and held virtually with the finals at Disney World last year.
”We plan to visit various historical places there. The Smithsonian museum is one of my favorites in D.C.,” she said.
Other favorites of hers are author Roald Dahl (“James and the Giant Peach”) and Leonardo da Vinci as her favorite historical figure.
”Roald Dahl’s books have newly invented words and are pretty humorous,” she said. “Leonardo da Vinci is my role model. He is a polymath and it amazes me that a person can be proficient in various fields.”
For the record, a polymath is a person of wide-ranging knowledge or learning (yes, had to look that up, thanks Oxford Languages) — someone like her.
Her next career path
Though it will be a while before she gets there, Veduru is already thinking about adulthood. She wants to pursue a career in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math).
”I love math as there is more than one way to solve a problem. I would like to contribute in reducing global warming,” she said.
In the meantime, there is a national spelling competition for which she is preparing. Much like an athlete trains their body, she trains her mind. And, just like athletes, it must be daily, she said.
”Spelling Bee is a brain sport. I prepare daily by studying roots, language rules and words. My favorite way to study is by typing words after reading all the required information of the word,” she said.
It also doesn’t hurt to pick the minds of prior competitors, she added.
”I have been active in the spelling community since third grade. It is inspiring and motivating to chat with past national spellers,” which she can now also do for other up-and-comers.
”I would advise not to be intimidated by other experienced spellers. All that matters is to get your word right,” she said.
