Moody MS eighth-grader finishes 30th at Scripps National Spelling Bee
Moody Middle School eighth-grader Taran Shivkumar finished tied for 30th at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., correctly spelling three words and answering two questions before being eliminated in the eighth round when he misspelled the word cryosel, which refers to cryohydrate, a crystalline solid.
Shivkumar was competing with 246 other elementary and middle school students from throughout the nation at the event, which is being held at the DAR Constitution Hall.
The bee is down to nine finalists, who will compete May 28 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. for the title. The event is being televised on the ion television network.
In the first round, Shivkumar correctly spelled “vicissitudes,” and then in the second round he correctly defined “hedonism” as a way of life based upon the pursuit of pleasure. He had met his spelling test threshold and did not have to compete in the third round, and then in the fourth round, he spelled “hypoxemia” correctly.
In the fifth round, he correctly defined “draconian” as meaning “extreme severity or cruelty,” and in the sixth round he correctly spelled “ortet.”
Shivkumar advanced to the national event after winning the Henrico County Divisionwide Spelling Bee Feb. 5 and then claiming the Richmond Raceway Regional Spelling Bee March 24.
