[Alberta's Child]

"Every year, four of the students there for the spelling bee were selected to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier," he said. "They called to ask me to participate, and I said 'no,' without asking a parent. I decided I didn't need that distraction."

I suspect the four kids who took up this offer ended up being better citizens at the end of the day.

[Cronos]

another one Lala still keeps in touch with spellers she has met, and said several who did not win the Bee have since surpassed her in accomplishment. They work hard, she said, but take nothing for granted. Lala is starting medical school at the University of Arkansas; she received a Masters in cancer biology at the University of Texas at Houston and previously worked at a neuroscience lab at MIT for several years before deciding to change her career path.

[DaveA37]

I say “congratulations” to those students for their achievements.

“Reading, writing and arithmetic” are no longer being taught in our schools, it’s things like the “common core” nonsense that has taken front stage and lowered our kids educational standings worldwide. Time to ditch all the flowery teaching ideas and get back to basics.