Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee: big birthday as 2025 challenge begins
Anthony Albanese launched the fifth annual Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee with the help of Rockdale Public School students. Get your free Years 3-8 activity poster for class and home HERE
READING LEVEL: GREEN
The significant a-n-n-i-v-e-r-s-a-r-y on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s mind during his Rockdale Public School visit had nothing to do with his forthcoming wedding.
Officially launching the Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee’s milestone* fifth year, the man himself said 2024’s record 70,557 student registrations promised that this year’s fun national spelling challenge would be “the biggest and best yet”.
Mobbed at recess after meeting some of the southern Sydney school’s top spellers, the PM said the Bee – run by free classroom news site Kids News – was especially timely for young Australians amid the current technological revolution.
“More than ever, your generation has to contend with technology that tries to tell you what to say as well as how to say it,” he said. “This spelling bee is a way to build the comprehension and communication skills to speak for yourself.
“It’s also a great way to boost your memory, a strength that will hold you in good stead* right through life.”
With registrations and the school round open from 9am AEST tomorrow, Mr Albanese invited all students across years 3-8 to take part.
“If you’re reading this, I hope you have a crack at the 2025 Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee,” he said. “I wish you all the very best and I look forward to meeting the winners later in the year.”
Rockdale PS principal Amy Ha said students and staff “were all super excited” to host their VIP visitor for the launch, adding that literacy* was “the foundation of all learning and vital to student success”.
“Spelling has been undermined* by texting and social media, so it is imperative* that we, as educators, encourage students to develop strong spelling skills to ensure success in all areas of literacy,” Ms Ha said.
Entering her students for the first time, Ms Ha said: “The Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee competition is a great way to motivate students to have a go and be part of the fun.”
News Corp Australia community ambassador* Penny Fowler said the fifth year of competition was cause for celebration.
“The Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee has fantastic momentum, growing in popularity every year and bringing to the fore the critical role literacy plays in educating young Australians and positively impacting their path to adulthood,” Ms Fowler said.
“Amid concerns about children’s social media exposure, it’s inspiring to see so many embrace the written word to unlock a lifetime of learning, reflecting Kids News’ belief that education is an investment in future generations.”
Nova 96.9 co-host and devoted father of three Michael “Wippa” Wipfli said the PM’s Spelling Bee “rewards concentration, curiosity and persistence”.
“Every child deserves the chance to shine through effort, not algorithms*,” Wippa said. “A good old-fashioned spelling bee offers more than just a chance to memorise words – it helps kids to slow down and build confidence at a time when many are overwhelmed.”
A big believer in building resilience* in kids, co-host Ryan “Fitzy” Fitzgerald said the Bee was “an unbelievable confidence-building” initiative.
“We need to start learning and adapting, combining the latest technology with those basic skills of literacy, English, grammar that we grew up with,” he said, likening his own sons’ development to “getting into the gym”.
“You’re not going to see results straightaway, but when you do start seeing results, it’s really fulfilling,” he said.
DON’T WORRY, “BEE” HAPPY
Tackling a new challenge can make us all feel a bit anxious – and sometimes it feels more worrying when there are other big things happening in the world around you.
Change is an inevitable* part of life – but it’s not always easy to manage.
“That includes changes both big and small, like moving from primary school into high school, making new friends or even trying out a new hobby,” said ReachOut clinical governance* lead Linda Williams.
“These things can be exciting but they can sometimes make you feel nervous or even scared.
“Some levels of stress can be good and it can help us do hard things like exams. However, when we feel like we have too many things to deal with at once, that stress can start to feel overwhelming.”
If you feel scared, worried or just don’t feel like yourself, whatever is bothering you, it’s important that you talk to someone about what’s going on for you, Ms Williams said. That could be a parent or carer, someone at school like a teacher or even a mental health service like ReachOut PeerChat or the Kids Helpline.
Everyone is different and every child has different strengths and concerns.
“Some will love things like public speaking and taking part in races and games, whereas others might prefer to take on challenges which they can complete themselves, such as reading a book through to the end, learning a new language or online games,” Ms Williams said. “It’s important and necessary that we provide opportunities and options for young people no matter their ability or learning style.
“We wish all spelling bee entrants the best of luck this year and hope they all get lots out of the experience!”
Kids can get support at au.reachout.com/peerchat, kidshelpline.com.au or by phoning the Kids Helpline free on 1800 55 1800
- ABOUT THE BEE
The Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee is a free, online competition for students in Years 3-8. - Students compete at their school in three levels: Green level for Years 3-4, Orange level for Years 5-6 and Red level for Years 7-8.
- They get 30 randomly selected words from their competition level and have 25 seconds to type each answer. The students with the most correct words in the fastest time progress to finals.
- Teachers can register their students from July 21 when the school round begins.
- The school round ends on August 22. State and territory finals will be held September 1-5 and the national finals on September 10-11.
- The national champion in each age group wins a trip to Canberra to meet the Prime Minister, an iPad, HarperCollins book pack and a $1000 voucher for their school.
Details: kidsnews.com.au, spelling-bee.com.au
POLL
GLOSSARY
- milestone: important moment or event in the history or growth of something
- stead: the place, position or role someone occupies in future
- literacy: the ability to read and write, and more broadly spell, comprehend, apply rules of grammar and so on
- undermined: weakened or made less effective
- imperative: extremely important or urgent
- ambassador: official representative of a country, company, organisation or brand
- algorithms: the logic and rules that decide, organise and serve social media content so that users will stay on the platforms for longer
- resilience: the ability to be happy and positive again after something difficult or bad has happened
- inevitable: something that had to happen and could not be avoided or stopped
- governance: the act or process of managing the direction or deciding how something is done
EXTRA READING
Bee winners put PM to the test
New Spelling Bee champs crowned
QUICK QUIZ
- How many students were registered in last year’s Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee?
- PM Anthony Albanese launched the 2025 Bee at which school?
- The Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee is celebrating which milestone birthday?
- Nova 96.9’s Ryan “Fitzy” Fitzgerald likened his sons’ literacy development to what activity?
- His co-host Michael “Wippa” Wipfli said all kids deserved a chance to shine through what?
LISTEN TO THIS STORY
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Calming your buzzy nerves
It’s quite normal that some competitors might feel anxious before they complete their spelling bee heat. However, there are lots of ways to overcome that nervous feeling. Work with a partner to brainstorm some strategies that competitors in the Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee could use to feel prepared and calm. Discuss your ideas and agree on a top three to share with your class.
Time: allow 15 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English; Personal and Social Capability
2. Extension
Work with your partner from the activity above to practice trying out the calming strategies you identified. One partner should role play being the teacher, giving students the instructions to get ready for the spelling bee heat. The other partner plays themself, demonstrating and ‘talking aloud’ the strategies that will help them to overcome any jitters.
Swap roles so that you both have a chance to practice your strategies.
Time: allow 10 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English; Personal and Social Capability
VCOP ACTIVITY
I spy nouns
Nouns are places, names (of people and objects), and time (months or days of the week).
How many nouns can you find in the article?
Can you sort them into places, names and time?
Pick three nouns and add an adjective (describing word) to the nouns.
Where are our Bee champs now?
With over 200,000 registered students since 2021, the Prime Minister’s Spelling Bee turns five in Term 3 when the fun, online Kids News comp opens. Meet our champions and TRY THE BEE
Read more
Bee winners put PM to the test
It has become a tradition for the PM Spelling Bee winners to give the Prime Minister a little spelling test of his own, but there was one especially tricky word that Mr Albanese chose to pass on
Read more