Pupils from Nancy Reuben and Sacks Morasha primaries took the laurels in this year’s National Hebrew Spelling Bee.
Contestants have to translate as many words as they can from English and spell them in Hebrew in a minute from a set list for the competition.
Dalia Wittenberg, primary Ivrit advisory teacher to PaJeS, which ran he event with Routes into Languages East and the Leo and Betty Gruss Charitable Trust, praised the students who had “worked hard for months practising the long list of words”.
The 47 participants from six schools from London and Manchester showed “great dedication, commitment, determination, motivation, and above all, a love for the Hebrew language learning,” she said.
“The competition helps year-5 and -6 students in Jewish primary schools consolidate their Ivrit by practising and improving their vocabulary, spelling, pronunciation and memory skills.”
It enabled them to become more confident Ivrit speaker and connect to Israel, she said.
In the year-5 category for non-native speakers, Nancy Reuben’s Yaelie Ben Shushan came top, followed by Oliver Orman of Etz Chaim as runner-up, and Miri Shiers and Avishai Blackton, both of Sacks Morasha, in third and fourth.
The year-6 champion was Tamara Aaron of Sacks Morasha; with Maytal Goldman, also of Sacks Morasha in second: Sara Freudenthal of Nancy Reuben in third; and Ollie Redwood, of Sacks Morasha, in fourth.
In the native Hebrew speakers’ contest, Nancy Reuben’s Avigail McWhir was first, followed by Ariel Lahav of Alma; Tahila Babaev of Nancy Reuben; and Alma’s Keshet Ben Or.
