Smile Report: Zac Mitchell, an eighth-grader at Coosa Middle School, takes county spelling title
Media release: Zac Mitchell, an eighth-grader at Coosa Middle School, used his theater experience to control his nerves and confidently spell “haiku” and “expertise” to take the spelling championship at the 2015 Floyd County Schools Spelling Bee. The system’s annual spell-off was held on Wednesday, February 11, 2015 at 9 a.m. at the Floyd County Schools central office. Hayden Dancause, an eighth-grader at Model Middle School, was the runner-up in the competition. YouTube video of win
Mitchell holds the distinction of having won his school spelling bee each time he was eligible from fourth grade to eighth grade and he has participated in the system final for five consecutive years. “I guess all of those other times were practice rounds for me,” laughed Mitchell. He credited his success to controlling his nerves by tapping into his theater experience. Mitchell has appeared in several productions of Rome Little Theatre. He said, “When I was at the microphone spelling, I was not nervous - that came as I was sitting and waiting for the next word.”
Mitchell is from a family of educators as both his parents teach in Floyd County Schools. He planned to make his parents a big part of his preparation for the District Spelling Bee. “I am sure we will spend a lot of time with my parents calling out words to me,” Mitchell said.
As the winner of the spelling title, Mitchell received a plaque and certificate recognizing his accomplishment. He will represent Floyd County Schools in the District Spelling Bee to be held on Saturday, February 28 at 10 a.m. at the Floyd County Schools central office. Dancause will serve as an alternate.
School spelling champions participating in the Floyd County Spelling Bee were: Alto Park, Julia Haynes; Armuchee Elementary, Joshua Hash; Armuchee Middle, Maura Duke; Cave Spring Elementary, Anna Kapustay; Coosa Middle, Zac Mitchell; Garden Lakes Elementary, Jay Gordon; Johnson Elementary, Leah Bartleson; Model Elementary, Aaliyah Ely; Model Middle, Hayden Dancause; Pepperell Elementary, Elijah Bentley and Pepperell Middle, Daniel Johnson.
