Westview School, one of the last of the independent K-8 schools left in Missouri, is always highly rated for the kind of education it provides. But, along with doing well in a high-tech society, Westview still prides itself as being a family friendly school and proud of its "old-fashioned" reputation.
One of those old fashioned traits is the school's annual spelling bee. Each spring for about the last 20 years, Westview holds a spelling bee with winners advancing on to the Joplin Globe Spelling Bee.
Stephanie Gray, who is a fourth-grade teacher at Westview, has been in charge of the spelling bee ever since she came to the school nine years ago. And, in those nine years, she has become convinced that the spelling bee is a great educational tool.
In a world dominated by electronics which give everyone access to spell check and grammar check, Gray says spelling bees do more than teach spelling.
"Technology has certainly made it easier for students to check their spelling in typed work. However, it is still important to know how to spell because it improves reading and writing fluency, as well as vocabulary and comprehension," Gray explained.
Gray also says good spelling gives a person a "firm foundation" of phonetic sounds which are important in learning how phonetic sounds help a speaker or reader connect sounds to words.
While things such as spell check are helpful, Gray pointed out that spell checks doesn't catch everything. For example, a person might put a perfectly spelled word such as "doe" when they really meant "dough." A spell check sees the word "doe" as being a correct spelling so does not tell the writer to make a change.
These problems, along with other things a spell check cannot correct, often become an obstruction to poor spellers.
The spelling bee at Westview is open to any student in fourth, fifth or sixth grade. Each class has a "spell off" and the winners are eventually entered in the contest in Joplin. Should one of the Westview students win the Joplin Globe Spelling Bee, he or she is eligible for state competition.
According to Gray, all students are welcome to participate and compete.
"It isn't mandatory, but usually all students like to have the opportunity to try to qualify," Gray explained.
The school's spelling bee finals are open to everyone and, with a large audience, the local spellers get a sense of the pressure and stress they will face when they move on to compete in Joplin.
Just as youngsters did for many generations in the old one-room country schools, the very modern students at Westview are carrying on a fun and education heritage as they take part in the school's annual spelling bee.
