Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
In 2019, Siona Kshirsager finished the Cheyenne County Spelling Bee in second place to Aadhay Krishna.
Last week, Siona finished her experience in spelling contests with a first place trophy and an invitation to the state spelling bee in Omaha at the Scottish Rite Masonic Temple.
The Cheyenne County Spelling Bee was held Jan. 21 at West Elementary School with 29 contestants from Potter-Dix, Leyton, Sidney Middle School and West/North Elementary Schools.
Words varied from the simple to the abstract and complicated. Some of the words were complicated because the phonetics, the sound of the words, were misleading the spelling. For example, is the correct spelling con, conn, cahn or kahn? The decision effectively decided first place. The final word sounded simple, but sounds and spellings don't always match. However, he is an experienced speller, having competed last year as well.
Judges and the reader of the words have little control of which word is used for what student. The list of words is sent to the school from
By Round 4, there were 11 contestants left. Four remained as of Round 6 and the first and second place decision was made in Round 8 with Siona Kshirsager in first and Katie Eckhardt of Leyton in second.
Each year, about 80 students from Nebraska and western Iowa compete in the Omaha World-Herald Midwest Spelling Bee. The winner of the Omaha World-Herald Midwest Spelling Bee earns an all-expense paid trip to Washington, D.C., to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in May.
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