Can You Spell C-H-A-M-P-I-O-N?

For some people, the road to the state spelling bee might have seemed “sempiternal” (neverending). And if you could spell that, you might be on your way to the national spelling bee competition in Washington DC. That’s the word that Jonathan Horton spelled to win the bee. The Arizona Educational Foundation sponsored the 2007 Arizona Spelling bee at Arizona State University, KAET, on Saturday March 31st. Twenty seven students ranging from 4th to 8th grade spelled their way through a series of rounds until only two spellers remained. Seventh grader Pooja Paode from Willis Junior High in Chandler stood next to eighth grader Jonathan Horton from East Valley Christian Home Educators in Tempe. Finally Pooja misspelled the word sempiternal and Jonathan spelled it correctly. But the bee wasn’t over, Jonathan still had to spell one last word correctly. Jonathan won with the correct spelling of munificence, sending him on an all-expense paid trip to Washington DC where he will participate in the National Spelling Bee.

Jonathan has plenty of practice at spelling bees. It is his sixth year in a spelling bee, and his fourth year in the state bee. He’s been to the National Bee twice, finishing sixth last year out of 250 contestants. What’s his secret? Jonathan has a technique he uses to make sure he spells each word correctly. He whispers into his hand two or three letters at a time before saying them aloud into the microphone. There’s a reason he does this. Years ago he accidentally said the wrong letter, even though he knew how to spell the word. Ever since then he does this as a way to fight the nerves.

Jonathan became interested in spelling when he watched a bee on TV and thought to himself, “Hey, I could do that.” And evidently he can. When asked what his favorite words were, he said, “Not to sound cocky or anything, but I like the more challenging words.” And his favorite word? Gleichschaltung (a Nazi term for the process by which the Nazi regime successfully established a system of totalitarianism.)

All the finalists worked hard to get to this level, and family and friends were on hand to cheer them on and support them Saturday. There may have been some disappointment, but nobody showed it. Overall, the contestants were proud of their accomplishments. And as for Jonathan, he’s just excited to have another shot at the Nationals. And with any luck, maybe he’ll have to spell gleichschaltung this time.