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A magic spell

Home-school student buzzes through contest

Friday, February 25, 2005

By DONNA HARRIS The Mississippi Press

GAUTIER -- Can you spell "second chance?"

Home-schooled seventh-grader Tori Hanssen of Latimer correctly spelled "pyrometallurgical" Thursday night to win the annual Jackson County Spelling Bee for the second year in a row.

Tori came in second in the 2004 state competition. Her win on the county level means she'll compete for the state title again March 24.

Kederrius Davis, 12, a seventh-grader at St. Martin Middle School, was stumped on "liturgy," replacing the "u" with an "e."

Tori spelled it correctly, then spoke the letters of the winning word slowly so she wouldn't miss by mistake. She said she was familiar with the word, an adjective which refers to an ore-refining process, such as smelting.

Tori and Kederrius watched 23 other spellers quickly drop out of the bee, which was held in the cafeteria of Gautier Middle School. By the fifth round, the pair were the only two spellers left on the stage.

Olivia Hughes, 10, a fourth-grader at Beach Elementary in Pascagoula, was knocked out by "ravioli" in the fourth round when she added an extra "v."

"I just kind of stuttered," she said. "Once you say the letter you can't change it."

"Argonaut" did in Caleb Vick, a 12-year-old sixth-grader from East Central Middle School, in round four.

His mother, Tammy Vick of Big Point, said he's been studying all of the 3,900 words in the 2005 Paideia, a collection of word lists published quarterly for spelling bee contestants. "If he misspells them, he writes them 10 times each," she said.

Tori is the daughter of Rich and Rhonda Hanssen. Her older brother, Joshua, won the local and state spelling bees in 2001, and tied for 16th place out of 248 contestants at the national level.

Rich Hanssen said he often looks to his children for spelling assistance. "If I don't have spell check, I have them," he said.

Tori won't get a chance to try for a third Jackson County Spelling Bee win. The family is leaving the country soon to become missionaries, Rhonda Hanssen said.

The purpose of the Scripps National Spelling Bee, sponsored by E.W. Scripps, is to help students improve their spelling, increase their vocabularies, learn concepts and develop correct English usage.

Reporter Donna Harris can be reached at dharris@themississippipress.com or (228) 934-1448.

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