Xavier Thomas from Gwynneville Public School is one of five Illawarra-South Coast competitors to make it to the finals of the Premier’s Spelling Bee, and his classmates will be cheering him on. Photo: Gwynneville Public School.
The state’s top spellers will face off in a dynamic showdown this week.
More than 200,000 competitors were whittled down to just 64 in the Premier’s Spelling Bee this year – and five of the final contestants are public school students from the Illawarra and South Coast.
Year 4 students Cyrus King from Wollongong Public School and Neve Mellifont from Cobargo Public School will join Year 6 students Xavier Thomas from Gwynneville Public School, Quincy McCormack from Otford Public School and Jarrah Totterdell from Tathra Public School in the pursuit of the event’s two winning titles, junior and senior.
Cyrus and Neve will compete against 2024 junior division winner Wafiq Ayyash from New Lambton Public School, who is back this year to defend his title.
Xavier, Quincy and Jarrah are set to go head-to-head with Year 6 student William Weatherall from Coonabarabran Public School who is making an extraordinary fourth consecutive appearance alongside four other returning senior finalists, three of whom have moved up from the junior ranks since last year.
If you think you have what it takes to duke it out with our region’s most competent spellers, try Cyrus’ most challenging ever word, hippopotomonstrosquippedaliophobia – no peeking!
It means ‘a fear of long words,’ and is a phobia Cyrus most certainly does not have.
He said he wanted to take part in the spelling bee to challenge himself.
“It’s been a little bit more challenging than I expected,” he said.
“I’m excited for the finals – I think I can win it, hopefully.
“I’ve improved my spelling and enjoyed the competition so far.”
Cyrus’ principal, Harold Cosier, said as a former TV spelling champ himself, he was delighted to see Cyrus make it to the final rounds.
Mr Cosier said the benefits of the competition went far beyond spelling.
“It’s good experience standing in front of an audience and maintaining focus, and that’s a big challenge for a child,” he said.
“When I found out Cyrus had made the final I was blown away; I’m so excited on his behalf.
“As a school we value these opportunities for our kids to have a go and when they excel we celebrate with them; it makes us so proud.”
The Premier’s Spelling Bee, introduced in 2004 by former premier Bob Carr, has become a much-loved literacy event that inspires confidence and curiosity in language among NSW students.
The junior and senior finalists from Years 2 to 6 represent the top 0.03 per cent of students who took part in school spelling bees across some 1000 NSW schools this year.
In August, almost 2000 students competed online for the regional finals.
Gwynneville student Xavier Thomas has made it to regionals on two occasions, but this will be his state final debut.
He’s competed every year since he’s been old enough to qualify, and his principal Tenae Carroll said the whole school was proud of his skills and tenacity.
“Xavier is a quiet achiever, but spelling is his thing,” she said.
“He’s put in the time and effort to get there, he’s never given up.
“Extracurricular activities like this let every student shine in their own specific light.
“He has had the support of his teachers and parents to get there and his classmates have been cheering him on.
“It’s a phenomenal community event and I am so proud of him and everyone who has supported him.”
Contestants begin with ‘seen’ word lists provided by Macquarie Dictionary before facing ‘unseen’ challenges that test spelling skill and composure under pressure.
Xavier said he spent about 40 minutes each night before bed practising his spelling of seen and unseen words with his mum.
He memorises the seen words, but he credited his teacher with giving him the skills to figure out the unseen ones.
“If it’s a word I haven’t heard before I use the etymology and word structure we learn at school to help me,” he said.
“I like English, I enjoy the challenge of it, and I’m looking forward to meeting other competitors who are as involved in spelling.”
Xavier, Cyrus and all the other contestants will battle it out at the Q Theatre in Penrith on Friday 7 November.
The Premier’s Spelling Bee finals will be hosted by ABC personalities Toni Matthews for the juniors and Mark Humphries for the seniors.
