Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced the winners of the Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee, with three young Australians tackling some of the toughest words in the dictionary to top the country.
Almost 21,000 students from 490 schools around Australia took part in this year’s competition.
Obstreperous, connoisseur, meteorological and chihuahua were some of the words the top performers managed to spell correctly.
The national winners are:
- Arielle Wong from Donvale Christian College, VIC (Year 3/4 category)
- Theekshitha Karthik from Haileybury College, VIC (Years 5/6 category)
- Evan Luc-Tran from The McDonald College, NSW (Year 7/8 category)
Morrison congratulated the winners and all those who took part in this year’s competition.“Whether you’re a Prime Minister or a plumber, a teacher or a doctor, a fighter pilot or a scientist, spelling and reading are foundation skills you’re always going to need,” he said.
Minister for Education and Youth Alan Tudge added it was great to see a mix of students from a range of schools right around the country represented in the finals.
“Well done to everyone who took part and a particular thank you to all the teachers who encouraged and supported their students,” Tudge said.
“Improving school standards, particularly in literacy and numeracy are top priorities for me and the government and events like the spelling bee are a great way for students to improve their skills.”