Chinle Agency spelling bee

The thrill of spelling

Young students entertain at Chinle Agency spelling bee

By Cindy YurthUsually it's the big kids who get all the glory at spelling bees. Grades 1 through 3 are junior varsity at best. I mean, who cares if you can spell "rat"?

But the second-graders at Central Agency's bee put on a heck of a show, going 28 rounds and forcing the pronouncer to pull out the fourth-grade word list after he exhausted the second-grade and third-grade supply.

Mark Aruguete of Canyon de Chelly Elementary won the second-grade crown to uphold the family legacy.

Older brother Joseph was the Navajo Nation winner three years ago, and sister Esther, who is competing at the junior high level today, grabbed last year's seventh-grade title and lasted into the later rounds of the Navajo Nation bee (scheduled for March 11 in Tuba City this year).Comment:  For more on the subject, see Navajo Language Spelling Bee and Navajos in Spelling Bees.