Scripps National Spelling Bee

When Arvind Mahankali from Queens, New York correctly spelled the word "knaidel" to win the 2013 Bee, he had never eaten one before. So the famous Carnegie Deli invited him to stop by for a delicious bowl of soup, complete with knaidel, or small ball-shaped dumplings. 🥣

In the community of Holmes Rock in Grand Bahama sits a unique cave behind a local nightclub that produces fresh water at low tide and salt water at high tide. A school in this historic locale just enrolled in the Bee for the first time. 🐝 Welcome to the hive, Holmes Rock Primary School! ❤️

Sure, it's supposed to read "nozzle" but "noozle" is so much more fun. 🤣 #FridayFunnies

You won't believe the amazing benefits your school receives when it enrolls in the Bee: 📖 Official study lists, organized by grade level 💡 One-year subscription to Britannica Kids 👨‍💻 Free Tapple board game and classroom activity guide And so much more! Enroll today at spellingbee.com/enroll 🐝

Proud to announce our newest Regional Partner, the Boca Raton Public Library – giving schools across Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, and Okeechobee County the chance to participate in America’s most beloved educational competition. Schools can enroll by visiting SpellingBee.com/enroll! 🐝

Happy National Dictionary Day! 📖 Today we celebrate the birthday of Noah Webster and our incredible partners at Merriam Webster. Looking for a real page-turner? Curl up with Merriam-Webster's Unabridged, the official dictionary of the Scripps National Spelling Bee! 🐝

Join us tomorrow, Oct. 15, at 4pm ET for a free webinar on "How to Host a Successful School Spelling Bee Program!" 🐝 Perfect for new bee coordinators or veterans who'd like a refresher, including a live Q&A with a member of the Scripps National Spelling Bee team. 🔗 Register at https://bit.ly/4jkYA2q

Since the first Bee in 1925, we've crowned 111 champions of the Scripps National Spelling Bee 🏆 ⭐️ 58 boys, 53 girls 🐝 34 14-year-olds, 54 13-year-olds, 20 12-year-olds, and 3 11-year-olds ✏️ Scherenschnitte (2015) and éclaircissement (2025): longest winning words 🛷 Luge: shortest winning word (1984)

The state of Texas has produced 17 Scripps National Spelling Bee champions, almost twice as many as any other state. Ohio is next with 9, followed by Pennsylvania (8), California (7), Colorado (7) and Tennessee (7). Twenty states are waiting to crown their first Bee champion. Will 2027 be the year?

It's World Teachers' Day! 🍎 Raise your hands if you had an amazing teacher who inspired you, motivated you, encouraged and empowered you. Thank you to all the educators who invest their time and talents to help our young people shine. ⭐️ 📸: AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

Check out the Bee's Educator Guide to learn more about bringing the spelling bee program to your school! 🐝 This year's guide includes a profile on 2026 Educator of the Year Yasmeen Harris-Youngbood along with information about the Bee's newest partner, College Board. 🔗: https://bit.ly/4xmWhiD

Happy birthday to the great Vanya Shivashankar! 🎂 The 2015 Spelling Bee champion and 2023 Yale graduate made history last year as the Bee’s first-ever female pronouncer. Now, she’s tackling her next big challenge: starting her final year of medical school at the University of Miami. 🩺🐝

The first Bee champion was born on this day in 1913. Frank Neuhauser hoisted the trophy in 1925, and went on to earn degrees in engineering and the law, serve in the Navy during WWII, and craft a distinguished career as a patent attorney. A legacy befitting a champion. Happy heavenly birthday! 🎂

Welcome to the Bee! Shout out to some new schools joining the hive for 2026-27! 🚌 Pettisville Elementary School in Pettisville, Ohio ✏️ Skaith School in Saint Joseph, Missouri 📚 Frenchtown Middle School in Frenchtown, Montana Are you an educator? Join the fun at https://spellingbee.com/enroll 🐝

Sirjana Kaur competed at the 2019 Bee, watched as Covid canceled it in 2020, just missed it in 2021, then rebounded for a Top 50 finish in 2022. These days, she's studying neuroscience at UC Berkeley and won the Youth Poetry Slam at the Bigfoot Regional Festival this summer. Keep shining Sirjana! ⭐️

It's enrollment time for the 2026-27 Bee program! 🐝 If you're an educator and curious about what your school receives when you enroll, join us for a webinar today at 4pm ET. Learn about the enrollment process and have your questions answered by the Bee team. Register at https://bit.ly/46XTNMO

One of the Bee's great perseverance stories was authored by Sai Gunturi. 32nd place in 2000, then 16th the next year and 7th in 2002. He had one year left to realize his dream, and he nailed it for the win. Today Sai is still making his mark as chief product officer at NovaNav. Well done, champ!

On the 25th anniversary of 9/11, we recall the 2002 Bee – the first Bee after the attacks on the Pentagon. With the nation still on edge, hundreds of spellers traveled to D.C. to celebrate education and resilience, including '25 champ Frank Neuhauser and '02 winner Pratyush Buddiga.

Every year, more than 20,000 schools across the country enroll in the Scripps National Spelling Bee, helping more than 11 million students discover the power of words. Join the hive and help your students be everything they can Bee! 🐝 🔗: https://spellingbee.com/enroll

A boisterous welcome to schools around the country that have enrolled in the Bee for the first time! Welcome to the hive! 🐝 Evansville Christian School - East in Newburgh, IN 🚌 Heritage Classical Academy in Pepper Pike, OH 🚸 Ernie Pyle Middle School | Albuquerque, NM

We've been giving students a chance to become everything they can Bee since 1925. Enrolling your school is as easy as A-B-C. Visit https://spellingbee.com/enroll and start your Bee journey today! 🐝

With heavy hearts, we mourn the passing of Dolly Parton. Dolly devoted her life to the power of words – in her music, in her relationships, in her generosity. Her Imagination Library has gifted more than 332,000,000 books since 1995. Her legacy of love and literacy will live on forever. RIP, Dolly.🦋

Happy birthday to the endlessly impressive Zaila Avant-garde, champion of the 2021 Bee! This summer, Zaila was a Summer Honors Undergraduate Research Program scholar at @harvardmed.bsky.social. This fall, she'll continue studies at the @univofmaryland.bsky.social. Have a wonderful birthday, Champ! 🎂

It's a new school year, which means a new batch of amazing books featured on the Bee's Bookshelf list! August's pick is An Immense World by Ed Yong. Visit spellingbee.com/bookshelf to view this year's full list of featured titles and enter to win a copy of this delightfully educational book.

This year is the 60th anniversary of the 1966 Bee, when Robert Wake of Texas captured the trophy. 🏆 Bob went on to earn a degree from MIT, a PhD from Brown, and a law degree from Harvard. After a distinguished career as a professor and attorney, he retired earlier this year. ⭐️ Congratulations Bob!

🛎️ ENROLLMENT IS OPEN FOR THE 2027 BEE! 🐝 For every child who has ever pushed beyond what they thought possible and for every teacher who wants to nurture a love of words in their students, the Scripps National Spelling Bee is ready for you. Visit https://spellingbee.com/enroll today! 🍎

Have you heard the buzz? 🐝 Big news is coming.❤️

This year is the 80th anniversary of the first broadcast of the Bee on national television in 1946 on NBC! 📺 John McKinney from Iowa captured the crown that year, followed by Mary McCarthy of New York in second and Leslie Dean of New Jersey in third. 🐝

ATTENTION TEACHERS! 🍎 Did you know The Beehive is our biweekly newsletter crafted just for educators? Along with tips for running a spelling bee program, the newsletter contains fun classroom content, grammar lessons, and more. ❤️ Sign up today at https://bit.ly/44U9bZQ.

Back-to-school season is here, so that means the first school spelling bees are just a few short months away! 🐝 School enrollment officially begins in just a few days and we couldn't be more excited! 🤩

Mr. Rogers knew a thing or two about being a hero. #MotivationMonday

It's National Book Lovers Day! 📖❤️ If you could forget the entire plot of one book, just so you’d have the chance to read it for the first time again, which book would you choose?

It's back-to-school time! So many streets, so many #FridayFunnies 😂

In 1975, Gary Oberbrunner from New York competed in the Bee and placed 11th.🐝 He went on to graduate from MIT and spent 20 years at GenArts, working with clients like Disney and Lucasfilm. In 2019, Gary won an Emmy for co-creating tools that help editors add special effects after a film is shot.

Changing how we see ourselves can change everything. Have a great week! #MondayMotivation

This misspelling is so cheesy. 😂 #FridayFunnies

Year after year, our spellers tell us the best part of Bee Week is the friendships they make along the way and the camaraderie they feel with their fellow competitors. So today, on the International Day of Friendship, we celebrate all the joy, the laughter, and the memories made. #Friendship

Happy birthday to the legendary Sameer Mishra! His run to the 2008 Bee championship included this unforgettable moment that just never gets old.😂 Have a great day, Sameer! 🎉

Three #FridayFunnies for the price of one. 😂

In 1985, Kelly Lecker represented the Wisconsin State Journal at the 58th annual Scripps National Spelling Bee, placing 38th out of 168 spellers. In 2022, Kelly was named Executive Editor at that very same publication. A very cool story about a very good storyteller. Keep up the great work Kelly! ❤️

Did you know the first American film centered on spelling is the 1986 classic The Girl Who Spelled Freedom? It tells the true story of a Cambodian family forced to flee its war-torn homeland. Taken in by an American couple, their daughter Linn learns English by training for spelling bees. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thinking about your summer reading list? We recommend the breezy read of Merriam-Webster's Unabridged, official dictionary of the Bee. 🐝 More than 476,000 entries. Endless etymological plot twists. And handy cover on a rainy day. 📸: 2024 speller Aditi Muthukumar. Photo: AAron Ontiveroz/Denver Post

Remember the simple pleasure of hitting the local Blockbuster to peruse all the new arrivals and check out some movies? You can still do it, it's just called the library now. And it's free. Just one more reason libraries are awesome. 👏 📸: Coffeyville Public Library, Coffeyville, KS

In honor of today's World Cup Final, here's a replay of our very own Penalty Shootout of Words – Shrey Parikh's scintillating, championship-winning Spell-off performance at this year's Bee. ⏱️🐝 Who are you rooting for on the pitch today? ⚽️

Our Bee's Bookshelf Book of the Month for July is Odder by New York Times bestselling author Katherine Applegate! It's a touching and lyrical tale about a remarkable sea otter, perfect for summer reading! 📖 Learn more and pick up a copy for yourself at https://bit.ly/4vdSmUc. 🐝

Happy birthday to 2024 Bee champion Bruhat Soma! Who could ever forget his astounding performance in the Spell-off, nailing 29 out of 30 words to win the title. Have a fantastic birthday, champ! 🎂

Today is National Don't Step on a Bee Day! Bees are responsible for pollinating roughly one-third of the world's food supply. Bees are also responsible for inspiring a love of words in millions of students every year. All bees must be protected at all costs. 🐝❤️

Happy Independence Day! The 2026 Bee was held at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C. 🐝 It is home to an organization founded to honor the heroes who fought for our nation's freedom. As we celebrate the 250th anniversary, we remain proud of all the American traditions that bring us together. 🇺🇸

From the Peninsula Enterprise newspaper in Virginia, July 9, 1927: The sentiment at the end is very nice, but the misspellings (including a speller's name!) are wild. #FridayFunnies

Staff members at Johnston Senior High School must have known there was an issue with the 2026 Yearbook. They just couldn't C it. #FridayFunnies