CINCINNATI – The Scripps National Spelling Bee, presented by Kindle, once again is giving students who are inspired by spelling, vocabulary and reading a chance to earn a trip to the National Finals, and it requires no onstage spelling. The Spellebrity Video Contest challenges kids from across the country to creatively produce videos that spell out how to kindle the love of reading. Teams of students submitted their best work and now it is the public’s turn to choose the best five videos.
A panel of judges reviewed the long list of submitted videos and narrowed it down to the top 10 Semifinalist videos. Voting is open today through March 24 at Spellebrity.com for the public to pick favorite videos. The top five vote-getting teams will win an expenses-paid trip to the 2017 Scripps National Spelling Bee this May 30-June 1, near Washington, D.C.
“Our first Spellebrity Video Contest was such a success, we wanted to bring it back to give even more children the opportunity to experience the wonder of Bee Week,” said Paige Kimble, executive director of the Scripps National Spelling Bee. “These young video producers become instant spellebrities as our champion spellers celebrate their video storytelling on a topic they all share in common — their love of reading.”
The contest is part of the ongoing relationship between the Scripps National Spelling Bee, the nation’s largest and longest-running educational program, and Kindle. Both brands are working to elevate the belief that reading, spelling and vocabulary are critically important to a child’s lifelong achievement. With the Spellebrity Video Contest, students use their imagination to combine spelling and reading into a fun and inspiring message.
The Semifinalist videos range from live action to stop motion animation. Each one inspires viewers to kindle a love of reading through unique storytelling methods and mediums. Watch all ten videos to see what a pronouncer audition might entail, learn how to cure “Reader’s Fever,” and discover the love of reading with the help of two sisters.
All 10 semifinalist videos and online voting are available on Spellebrity.com. Contest rules limited video teams to no more than four members; the videos had a limit of less than five minutes; and they had to include at least three words that might be important to know for a spelling bee.
Voting guidelines:
Go to Spellebrity.com to watch the videos and vote.
Every voter has one vote.
The voting window is 10 a.m. EDT March 1 through 11:59 p.m. EDT March 24.
Voters must be in the U.S.
Voters must be at least 13 years old.
Semifinalists:
Bigham Yago | Valencia, California | Rio Norte Junior High; Tesoro del Valle Elementary
Bryn with a Bee | Lawrence, Kansas | Southwest Middle School
Kindle Cousins | Oneonta, New York; Orem, Utah; Salt Lake City, Utah | Evergreen Junior
High School; Highland Park Elementary; Oneonta Middle School; Windsor Elementary
Reader’s Fever | Delta Junction, Alaska | Whitestone Farms Training Center
Skyfire Studio | Northfield, Minnesota | Northfield Middle School; Prairie Creek
Community School
Spellebrity Showbuzz | Lufkin, Texas | Home School
Team Champion | Chandler, Arizona | Champion Chandler Charter School
Team Blackwell | West Palm Beach, Florida | Bak Middle School of the Arts
The Fab Four | Cedar Park, Texas | Westside Elementary School
The Innovators | Branchburg, New Jersey | Branchburg Central Middle School
The five videos that receive the most votes will advance to the National Finals where participants
in the Scripps National Spelling Bee will vote for the best video. The Champion video will be
announced during the 2017 Bee Week.
Prizes:
Each member of the Semifinalist teams (10) will receive a Kindle Paperwhite.
Each member of the Finalist teams (5), as selected by popular vote, will receive an
expenses-paid trip to the 2017 Scripps National Spelling Bee:
o Economy airfare or train fare for each team member and a parent/guardian
o One standard hotel room at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center
o $400 gift card for travel and meal expenses
o Complimentary tickets for each team member and parent/guardian for the
Memorial Day picnic, a Bee-organized tour of Washington, D.C., and the Awards
Banquet
Each member of the Champion team (1) will receive:
o $1,000 cash award
o Trophy
Key dates:
March 1-24 – Public votes on Spellebrity.com for favorite Semifinalist video
March 31 – Announcement of five Finalist videos at Spellebrity.com
May 31-June 1 – Finalist videos presented and voted on during Bee Week
June 1 – Champion video announced
About the Scripps National Spelling Bee:
The Scripps National Spelling Bee is the nation’s largest and longest-running educational program.
The purpose of the Scripps National Spelling Bee is to help students improve their spelling,
increase their vocabularies, learn concepts and develop correct English usage that will help them
all of their lives. Visit spellingbee.com for more information about the Scripps National Spelling
Bee, which is administered on a not-for-profit basis by The E.W. Scripps Company.
About Scripps:
The E.W. Scripps Company (NYSE: SSP) serves audiences and businesses through a growing
portfolio of television, radio and digital media brands. Scripps is one of the nation’s largest
independent TV station owners, with 33 television stations in 24 markets and a reach of nearly
one in five U.S. households. It also owns 34 radio stations in eight markets. Scripps also runs an
expanding collection of local and national digital journalism and information businesses, including
satire and humor video and web brand Cracked, podcast industry leader Midroll Media and overthe-
top video news service Newsy. Scripps also produces television shows including “THE LIST”
and “The Now” and runs an award-winning investigative reporting newsroom in Washington, D.C.
Founded in 1878, Scripps has held for decades to the motto, “Give light and the people will find
their own way.”
About Amazon:
Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for
invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-
Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct
Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and
services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit www.amazon.com/about.
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Contacts:
For questions or general inquiries:
513-977-3040
Spellingbee.com/contact
Twitter.com/ScrippsBee
For media inquiries only:
Valerie Miller
Manager, External Communications
513-545-6474
[email protected]