<UPDATED MARCH 11, 2024

$1,000 NATIONAL KIDS SPELLING BEE contact justin

Justin Rudd's nonprofit 501c3 Community Action Team (C.A.T.) spelling bee championship
   
   
 

$1,000 Spelling Bee
Each spring, Justin Rudd and his nonprofit 501c3 Community Action Team (CAT) host the National Kids Spelling Bee.  First prize is $1,000! Public, private, parochial and home-schooled students are welcome. 

national elementary school spelling bee

Excellent Speller?

I have always been a fan of competition. As a student I participated in lots of contests -- YMCA sports; art, drama, choral & instrumental competitions; geography & science projects; spelling bees and more. When I first moved to California a few years ago, I auditioned for singing/acting jobs and was fortunate to work in many movies, TV shows and several of Disney's special events around the country. My bulldog and I competed on a TV show, "You Lie Like a Dog" on Animal Planet where we won money for local animal charities. And, even today, I continue to participate in running, swimming and biking events.

Spelling is important to me. In my current profession as a publicist/event planner, I have to do a lot of writing and reviewing of press releases. Good spelling and grammar are mandatory. When I send and receive e-mail messages, I like to make a good impression by sending documents that have perfect spelling, grammar and punctuation. I don't like to rely on "Spell-Check."

I want students to learn excellent spelling habits at an early age. Hence, the creation of this elementary school-level spelling bee championship. The contest is open to the best spellers in the U.S. Hope to see you at the Bee!

With warm regards,

Justin Rudd!
Bee Organizer

g TAX-DEDUCTIBLE
Please Support the Spelling Bee

RIGHT NOW, while the need is in your mind, won't you please donate? We receive no government monies, and depend entirely on people like you.

WE HOPE YOU share our love for animals, kids and the environment, and our wish is that you'll consider a gift of $25, $50, $100 or another amount so that we can continue to bring you and our community fun events and meaningful projects.

CHECKS to Community Action Team (CAT), Attn. Justin Rudd, 3040 E. First Street, Long Beach, CA 90803.

501c3/Fed. Tax ID# is 05-0545777

I AM A FIRM believer in the collective power of individuals joined in a spirit of goodwill and generous giving to bring about the success of an organization. That's why we need you to get involved.

THE MAIN PURPOSE of the Community Action Team (CAT) is to promote social well-being among the general public. As a 501c3 nonprofit corporation governed by a board of directors, contributions to CAT are tax deductible and are used to help produce quality events within our community that benefit children, animals, and the environment.


C.A.T. IS AN UMBRELLA organization that includes Haute Dogs and:
4Halloween Kids' Costume Contest
4July 4 Kids' Bike Parade
4Interfaith Blessing of the Animals
4$1,000 National Kids Spelling Bee

4
National Adult Spelling Bee
4Sidewalk Chalk Art
Contest
4Haute Dog Howl'oween Parade
4Operation Easter Basket
4Operation Santa Paws
45k/10k Long Beach Turkey Trot
4monthly 30-Minute Beach Cleanups
4Clothing giveaways to the underserved
4Bulldog Beauty Contest


   

2024 National Kids Spelling Bee
Congratulations to Logan Bailey (center), a home-schooled 4th grade student from Houston, Texas, who won the 22nd annual National Kids Spelling Bee in Long Beach, Calif. on Sunday, March 10, 2024. He correctly spelled "luncheonette" and "irrelevant" in rounds 26 and 27 to win the Bee. Second place went to Shourya Sodhani, a 4th grader from Santa Clara, Calif. Third was Akshara Thummala, a 4th grade student from San Ramon, Calif. The Bee is hosted by Justin Rudd's nonprofit Community Action Team (CAT). JustinRudd.com/bee

Some other words in the final rounds included: slugabed, leonine, eminent, atoll, ingenious,
and recompense.


First place Logan Bailey with the bee's founder/organizer Justin Rudd.

National Kids Spelling Bee
The 22nd annual National Kids Spelling Bee is Sunday, March 10, 2024, in the fellowship hall at Bay Shore Church in Long Beach, Calif.



$1,000 National Kids Spelling Bee is Sunday, March 10, 2024

22nd annual

Sunday, March 10, 2024, 2 p.m.
Bay Shore Church fellowship hall, 5100 E. The Toledo, Long Beach, Calif., 90803. Free street parking and free parking lot at the corner of Granada Ave. and Livingston Dr.

National Elementary School Spelling Bee
FEE
• $10 if received on or before March 5
• $20 if received before event day
• $30 if received on event day.


SPECTATE
$5 cash/per spectator, at the door

WHO MAY ENTER?
This bee is for students in North America currently enrolled in grades 3-5. We welcome students from public, private and parochial schools, as well as home-schooled students. You do NOT need your school's permission to compete.

There is no limit to the number of students from a school. Spellers do not have to be endorsed or entered by their school.

SPONSORS
community action team justin rudd
justin rudd long beach belmont shore

National Elementary School Spelling BeeRULES
CLICK

CONTACT
Justin@JustinRudd.com

PRONOUNCER
Kate Karp, 2006 National Adult Spelling Bee champ

DICTIONARY
merriam-webster.com and dictionary.com

TOP PRIZE
The Bee's winner will get $1,000 from Justin Rudd's nonprofit 501c3 Community Action Team (CAT).

OUR SISTER BEE
Rudd and CAT also host the annual National Adult Spelling Bee on the same afternoon
ADULT BEE DETAILS

The Bee is hosted annually by Justin Rudd​ and his nonprofit Community Action Team (CAT)​ and is held at the Bay Shore Church in Long Beach, Calif.

JUDGES
2024 judges include Cindi Rogan and Lena Ragusa


CHAMPIONS & WINNING WORDS
2002 Kelli Conley, 10, Long Beach, Calif.; legible and conscience 
2003 Timothy Johnson, 11, Torrance, Calif.; belie and indebtedness 
2004 Steve Wang, 11, Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.; irretrievable
2005 Gabriella Pineda, 10, Anaheim, Calif.; unacceptable and tyranny
2006 Matt Buckley, 9, Temecula, Calif.; psalm and theocracy
2007 Lily Wu, 9, Pasadena, Calif.; precocious and cautionary
2008 Giselle Serate, 10, Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.; pharaoh and surveillance
2009 Snigdha Nandipati, 10, San Diego, Calif.; hemorrhage and impasse
2010 Atharva Patil, 9, Irvine, Calif.; telecommunication and deity
2011 Anne Jiang, 10, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.; colander and colloquial
2012 Jem Burch, 9, Van Nuys, Calif.; morphology and epiphany
2013 Arjav Rawal, 11, Fremont, Calif.; numismatic and emeritus
2014 Yash Hande, 10, San Diego, Calif.; leviathan and officious
2015 Ananya Vinay, 9, Fresno, Calif.; hydrofoil and paucity
2016 Anisha Rao, 10, Dublin, Calif.; beatific and magnanimity
2017 Navneeth Murali, 11, Torrance, Calif.; foray and pheasant
2018 Vayun Krishna,10, Sunnyvale, Calif.; scapegrace and eavesdrop
2019 Achuth Vinay, 9, Fresno, Calif.; ingenue and flummox
2020 Shradha Rachamreddy, 9, San Jose, Calif.: allegory and pundit
2021 COVID, bee cancelled
2022 Shrikar Vattikuti, 5th grade, San Diego, Calif.; avocation and malignant
2023 Mauryavardhanreddy Kudumula, 4th grade, Mountain House, Calif.; iguana and barricade
2024 YOU?

GET ON OUR E-MAIL LIST
To get on the Nat'l
Kids Spelling Bee and/or Nat'l Adult Spelling Bee e-News e-mail lists, CLICK HERE and input your e-mail address.

 



National Kids Spelling Bee 2023
Mauryavardhanreddy Kudumula (second from left), a 4th grader from Mountain House, Calif. won the National Kids Spelling Bee in Long Beach, Calif. on Sat., March 11, 2023. He correctly spelled zoology, iguana and barricade in final rounds of the bee. Second place was Shourya Sodhani (second from right) from San Jose, Calif. Third place was a tie for Leah Huoh (far left) of Tustin, Calif. and Milo Reizuch (far right) of Long Beach, Calif. The bee has been held for 21 years and is presented by Justin Rudd's nonprofit Community Action Team (CAT).

National Kids Spelling Bee
Congratulations to Shrikar Vattikuti (speller 6), a fifth grader from San Diego, for winning the 20th annual National Kids Spelling Bee in Long Beach, California, on Saturday, March 12, 2022. He correctly spelled "avocation" and "malignant" in the final two rounds. The bee is hosted by Justin Rudd and his nonprofit Community Action Team (CAT) and is held annually at Bay Shore Church in Belmont Shore. He won $1,000 from CAT's annual Long Beach Turkey Trot 5K/10K fundraiser. Second place went to third-grader Maurya Kudumula (speller 4). Third place was fifth-grader Justin Vu (speller 1) from Tustin, Calif. Kate Karp is the bee's pronouncer.

National Kids Spelling Bee
The 19th annual National Kids Spelling Bee was hosted by Justin Rudd's nonprofit Community Action Team at Bay Shore Church in Long Beach, Calif. on March 8, 2020. The bee is for grades 3, 4 and 5. It lasted 20 rounds and took about two hours. It was Shradha Rachamreddy (far left), a 4th grader from San Jose, Calif., that took home the first place ribbon and $1,000 after correctly spelling “allegory” and “pundit” in the final rounds.

Second place went to 5th grader Shrisha Prakir (second from right), Fremont, Calif., who misspelled “Caribbean” in round 19. Third place went to 5th grader Chaitra Thummala (far right) from San Ramon, Calif., who missed “assassin” in round 15. Fourth place went to the Bee’s returning champion, 5th grader Achuth Vinay (second from left) of Fresno, Calif., after getting out on “cybrarian” in round 14.



2019 PHOTOS: JustinRudd.com/2019beephotos
2019 National Kids Spelling Bee

Nine-year-old Achuth Vinay (center) from Fresno, California, took home the blue ribbon and $1,000 cash at the 2019 National Kids Spelling Bee.

Speller from Fresno, California, wins 18th annual National Kids Spelling Bee

FORTY KIDS in grades 3-5 registered for the 18th annual National Kids Spelling Bee held at Bay Shore Church in Long Beach, Calif. At the end of the 150-minute bee, it was 9-year-old Achuth Vinay from Fresno, California, who took home the $1,000 cash prize from Justin Rudd's Community Action Team (CAT). He correctly spelled "ingenue" and "flummox", in rounds 12 and 13 respectively, to win. Achuth is in the 4th grade at Fugman Elementary School in Fresno. Second place went to Shannon Yan. She was eliminated from the contest after misspelling "commissar" in round 12.

There was a three-way tie for third place for Devananda Anoop, Shradha Rachamreddy and Salena Somalraju when they misspelled "circadian", "Pleiades", and "anemometer" respectively in round 11. Other words from final rounds included: obstreperous, crepuscular, chartreuse, philistine, gnocchi, shibboleth, dudgeon, irascible, and brogue. 

2018 National Kids Spelling Bee2018 WINNERS: Vayun Krishna,10, of Sunnyvale, Calif., receiving his $1,000 cash at last Sunday's 17th annual National Kids Spelling Bee. Vayun is a fifth grader, and he correctly spelled "scapegrace" and "eavesdrop" in rounds 26 and 27, respectively, to win the bee.

Second place went to Barron Lee,10 -- a fifth grader from Covina. He misspelled "irreversible" in round 27. Other words he correctly spelled in final rounds included "kipper", "syringe" and "thrive."

Third place went to Devananda Anoop, 9, from Aliso Viejo. The fourth grader misspelled "religious" in round 18.

The Bee was created and is hosted by Justin Rudd and his nonprofit Community Action Team (CAT)​. The pronouncer for the Bee is Kate Karp​. Prize money comes from the Long Beach Turkey Trot​.


2017 National Kids Spelling Bee champion

The winner of the 16th annual National Kids Spelling Bee was Navneeth Murali, a fifth-grader from Torrance, Calif. He correctly spelled "foray" and "pheasant" to win the $1,000 prize. His two previous words in the bee included "lout" and "dulcimer."

Second place went to Ryan Yan, 5th grade, of San Gabriel, Calif. He misspelled "yawp" in round 12. But some earlier words he correctly spelled included "prehensile" and "wherewithal."

Third prize went to Kalena Kien, 5th grade, of Anaheim, Calif. She got out in round 11 after missing "holistic." The two previous words she got right were "slavishly" and "lethargic."

2017 National Adult Spelling Bee photos


National Kids Spelling Bee results: First place from Dublin, second place from Torrance, and third place from Folsom. 

2016 National Kids Spelling Bee winner, Anisha RaoThe 15th annual National Kids Spelling Bee took place Sunday, March 6 in Long Beach, Calif.  Anisha Rao, 10, from Dublin, Calif., correctly spelled "beatific" and "magnanimity" in the final rounds to win the $1,000 prize. She is in fifth grade at Kolb Elementary School in Dublin. In earlier rounds she correctly spelled words including "aikido", "marzipan" and "pejorative."

Second place in the bee for kids was Navneeth Murali,10, of Torrance, Calif. He is in the fourth grade at Victor Elementary School in Torrance. He was eliminated after misspelling "scalawag" in round 16. He correctly spelled "alliteration", "unctuous" and "supersede" in some of the previous rounds.

Third place went to Xuan Mai Johnson, 11, from Folsom, Calif. She is in the fifth grade at Theodore Judah Elementary School in Folsom. She got out in round 15 after incorrectly spelling "perigee." However, she perfectly spelled "ceviche", "hyperbole" and "capacious" in some of the previous rounds.

The bee lasted 2 ½ hours and is hosted annually by Justin Rudd and his nonprofit Community Action Team (CAT) at Bay Shore Church in Belmont Shore. Kate Karp is the pronouncer. Judges included Willa Heart, Sharon Sueki, and Elizabeth Schirmer. The prize money comes from CAT's Long Beach Turkey Trot 5K/10K.

2016 National Kids Spelling Bee photos



THE WINNER of the 14th annual National Kids Spelling Bee (grades 3-5) was Ananya Vinay, 9, from Fresno, Calif. She took home $1,000 in cash after correctly spelling "hydrofoil" in Round 15 and "paucity" in Round 16. Ananya is in the 4th grade at Fugman Elementary in Fresno, Calif. The Bee lasted just under two hours on Sunday, March 1, 2015.

2015 PHOTOS

Second place was Akia Allan, 10, from Riverside, Calif. He misspelled "medallion" in Round 15. Third place was a tie between Ashna Ahmed, 11, from Yorba Linda, Calif. and Jayani Srinivasan, 7, from Camarillo, Calif.

The Bee lasted just over two hours. Some words spelled in the final rounds included:
• exaggerate
• fraternity
• hypocrisy
• amass
• excessive
• intuitive
• lexical
• monotheism
• medallion
• hydrofoil



2014 Spelling Bee photos



2011 National Elementary School Spelling Bee | Long Beach, Calif.
THIRD-GRADER wins $1,000 correctly spelling morphology and epiphany.

 

g ALL EYES ON YOU
What's In a Word?


justin rudd
PLENTY, ESPECIALLY when it's the rigors of an elementary grade level spelling bee and one of the participants has the opportunity to walk home with a grand prize package that includes $1,000! Words like extraterrestrial, pollution, fiery and phylum must be spelled and spelled correctly under the watchful eyes and ears of judges. If that is not challenging enough for the young students (third, fourth and fifth graders), it must be done while their peers, who are also nervously awaiting their opportunity to shine, look on.

The National Kids Spelling Bee is designed to help students improve their spelling, increase their vocabulary, and develop correct English usage. This contest is sure to have some nail-biting, breath-bating competitors.

ALL U.S. public, private, parochial and home schools are allowed to enter any number of spellers in the $1,000 National Kids Spelling Bee. Students in grades 3-5 are eligible and words began on a fifth-grade level.

STUDENTS ARE ELIMINATED from the competition after misspelling one word. The rules are fashioned after the Scripps National Spelling Bee, a contest for students up to and including grade eight.


g GOOD TO KNOW
Questions and Answers

justin ruddIs there a study guide for this spelling bee?
There is not an official study booklet for this competition. All words listed in the dictionary (starting at a fifth-grade level) may be considered for this contest.
Complete Rules

Who goes first in the competition?
Participants will draw numbers to see who starts first (which presents an element of risk as elimination occurs in order). Complete Rules




g A GREAT WORD LIST TO PRACTICE FROM THE CALIF. ADULT SPELLING BEE SITE

National Kids Spelling Bee

 

justin rudd on YouTube

justin rudd on facebook




justin rudd headshot
Who is this guy?!
- Justin Rudd!
, Haute Dogs and Community Action Team (CAT), founder & organizer


HOW WOULD YOU DO?
Words spelled correctly in the final rounds of one of our recent bees included, “opine”, “pettifoggery”, “onerous”, “facsimile”, “oxidation”, “emoticon”, “antidote”, “secede”, “cribbage”, “digression” and “nincompoop.”