3 years ago
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A Little Rock 7th grader has been stung by the spelling bee. In six days she'll compete for tens of thousands of dollars. THV's Liz Massey found out she?s quite a-m-a-z-i-n-g.
Students at The Anthony School have their noses in books and that's just fine with Samia Nawaz. She pays close attention to every word.
Samia explains, "The whole thing started because I really like to read and when you read, you?re pretty much a natural speller."
In fact, Samia can spell tens of thousands of words. Friends call her the ?Walking Dictionary.? It all began when Samia was in elementary school.
Samia says, "After the third grade spelling bee I placed second in the school; I kind of knew I should keep trying harder and I?ve always wanted to make it to nationals."
And now she's going. Two months ago, Samia beat out 62 other spellers winning the Arkansas State Spelling Bee and a free trip to the national spelling bee in Washington, D.C.
"I was just really excited; I was just so happy that they gave me a word I knew," says Samia.
With national less than a week away, Samia is studying up to two hours a day. She hopes to bring home the trophy.
Now Samia is superstitious and doesn't allow her dad to videotape competitions. She also carries a spelling bee charm and a piece of jewelry in her pocket. Competition kicks off next Wednesday and Thursday.
For more information on the national spelling bee and to track Samia?s progress click on the link.
