Nate Franklin is a handy kid to have around when there’s a difficult word to spell or somebody has a question about a foreign land on the other side of the globe.
The Leonard Elementary fifth-grader recently won his school’s spelling bee and National Geographic Bee by besting 44 of his classmates in both competitions.
‘How cool is that?? said Leonard Principal Joyce Brasington. ‘I was really happy for him. He’s just an exceptional student, well-disciplined and motivated. It’s inspiring for the other students.?
Franklin’s winning word in the spelling bee was glucose.
‘Not an easy word to spell,? Brasington noted.
Franklin will go on to represent Leonard in the regional Oakland Press Spelling Bee at Oakland University in February.
In the school’s National Geographic Bee, Franklin answered four out of five questions correctly for the win.
He then took a 70-question written exam to see if he qualifies for the state competition in April.
If Franklin scores high enough on the test, he’ll compete among the top 100 students in Michigan.
State winners are invited to participate in the national finals in May held at National Geographic headquarters in Washington D.C.
Good luck, Nate. We’ll all be rooting for you.