Students earn top honours in language contest

Recently, Apeejay School, Model Town, celebrated a moment of academic pride as its students excelled in a prestigious Spell Bee Competition. Demonstrating exceptional language skills and confidence, the young achievers brought laurels to the school.

Meet Vardaan Khurana, Reet Mehra, and Loveroop Kaur. In a candid interview, they share their interests and their winning strategy.

Vardaan, a Class V student, loves reading books and playing cricket. “My Spell Bee International journey began in Class I when our Headmistress and my teacher encouraged me to participate. I am very thankful to them, as we were not aware of such a vocabulary enhancement programme,” he said.

The competition has four levels — School, Regional, National, and International—with the first three conducted offline. “There was no specific strategy. I followed my mentor’s guidance, attended online lectures, and used the books provided by the school. She helped me a lot, especially with phonetics and pronunciation,” he shared.

Vardaan believes such competitions boost vocabulary and self-confidence. He expressed gratitude to Vice-Principal Ms Piyanka Grover and Headmistress Ms Namrata Sharma for giving him the opportunity and supporting him in achieving his goal.

Reet, a Class VI student, has a strong interest in English and enjoys exploring new words, which made preparing for the Spell Bee a fun experience. “I also love reading storybooks, solving puzzles, drawing, dancing, and listening to music. I’m curious by nature, enjoy learning new things, and always try to give my best in whatever I do,” she said.

To prepare, she focused on daily practice, understood word roots, and took regular mock tests. Reading and revising tricky words helped a lot. “Staying consistent was the key to scoring well and earning the distinction. The most challenging part was tackling unfamiliar words under time pressure. I overcame it by staying calm, breaking the words into roots or syllables, and using logic,” she shared.

Reet was thrilled when her name was announced and credits her success to her family and teachers. “Their support boosted my confidence. Go for it—understand the words, practise daily, and believe in yourself!”

Lovroop, a Class VI student, enjoys classical dance, painting, swimming, and reading. She prepared for the Spell Bee through regular practice and revisions, starting with easier sections. “The toughest part was understanding and memorising many words, which I tackled through repetition,” she said.

Thrilled with her result, she thanked God for her success. “My mother supported me throughout, and my teachers patiently cleared all doubts,” she added. Encouraging others, she said, “Participate in such competitions — they improve your English vocabulary and boost confidence.”