Spelling Bee of Canada
- Not to be confused with the official CanSpell National Spelling Bee, or the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
The Spelling Bee of Canada is a charitable, educational organization founded in the Greater Toronto Area in 1987, in an initial attempt to create a national Canadian spelling bee. It is an independent and unsanctioned event which is not affiliated with the much larger and well-established US-based Scripps National Spelling Bee or the official Canspell National Spelling Bee which already competes in all 10 Canadian provinces and provides a Canadian National Champion for the Scripps competition.
The SBOC organizes annual spelling bees aimed at youth 6-14 years of age. The participants are placed into one of three categories, Primary age 6 to 8, Junior age 9 to 11 & Intermediate age 12-14 to vie for scholarships, trophies and prizes. As of 2005, over 30 000 children from across Ontario have participated in the program. With the aid of technology, the SBOC's strategy for growth over the "next 3 years" (as initially posted on the organization's website in late 2004 [1]) is to target all regions within each province to join the program.
However, SBOC still only operates almost exclusively in Ontario, with its highest level of competition, the SBOC Ontario finals, having been broadcast for several years on a regional network, TVO. Outside Ontario, it has received much less media attention than the official Canspell National Spelling Bee, which competes in all 10 Canadian provinces and provides a Canadian National Champion for the US-based Scripps National Spelling Bee.
[edit] Recent SBOC Ontario winners
- 2004 Junior:
1st place - Varjitt Jeeva 2nd place - Keerthana Ravigulan 3rd place - Samuel Heersink
- 2004 Senior:
1st place - Dhivian Premakumar 2nd place - Jeffrey Baer 3rd place - Kiruthiha Vimalakanthan
- 2005 Junior:
1st place - Gazal Grewal 2nd place - Charlie Gray 3rd place - Katie Martin
- 2005 Senior
1st place - Jeffrey Baer 2nd place - Kiruthiha Vimalakanthan 3rd place - David Sheps
- 2006 Junior:
1st place - Katie Martin 2nd place - Jill O'Craven 3rd place - Kim Tran Nguyen
- 2006 Senior:
1st place - Leslie Newcombe 2nd place - Angus Benderavage 3rd place - Sarah Bowers
- 2007 Primary:
1st place - David Chan 2nd place - Laura Newcombe 3rd place - Veronica Penny
- 2007 Junior:
1st place - Katie Martin 2nd place - Zuhaer Anzum Zim 3rd place - Maleika Jeewanjee
- 2007 Intermediate:
1st place - Umayangga Yogalingam 2nd place - Donald Bowins 3rd place - Merany Ganesan
- 2008 Intermediate:
1st Place - Caitlin McLaren 2nd place - Alexander Newcombe 3rd place - Jessica Zung
- 2009 Intermediate:
1st Place - Jessica Zung 2nd Place - Alexander Newcombe 3rd Place - Ibrahim Tahir
- 2009 Junior
1st Place - Daniela Kistemaker 2nd Place - Janahan Selvanayagam 3rd Place - Veronica Penny
- 2009 Primary
1st Place - Zakhar Husak 2nd Place - Zhongtian (Niuniu) Wang 3rd Place - Neharika Nair
- 2010 Junior
1st Place - Veronica Penny 2nd Place - Anna Lawrence 3rd Place - Laura Newcombe
- 2011 Intermediate
1st Place Veronica Penny 2nd Place Emma McLaren 3rd Place Laura Newcombe
[edit] Note
Only the official Canspell National Spelling Bee is affiliated with the US-based Scripps National Spelling Bee. SBOC winners must compete in the Canspell National Spelling Bee in order to qualify for the Scripps bee, as the SBOC is an unsanctioned regional event, and not affiliated with either bee.
