By Nobuhle Ngema
On the 8th and 9th of May 2025, Sunward Park hosted a Spelling Bee competition for different high schools, with the aim of helping learners find creative ways to improve their academic performance, and realizing that Spelling Bee is one of them.
The organizers of the Spelling Bee said Spelling Bee is vital as it directly contributes to learner’s acumen in the English language, which is a language of teaching and learning. They said it also encourages learners to find pleasure in words, and to engage more in their books and academia. “Who knows, maybe this one win would inspire a learner to be a writer, or a teacher, or even an avid reader. We all know that readers are leaders, and all that we know in this world is connected to literature.” said one of the organisers.
They believe Spelling Bee forces learners to spend more time with their books as they practice spelling words, and that it also helps improve vocabulary building, which directly affects sentence construction and speech presentation in class.
It was first initiated in 2024, with only four schools participating. The purpose was to introduce a wide spectrum of extra-curricular activities so that learners who are not into sport or dance can also find something to participate in.
This time, 2025, the competition ran for two (2) days. On Thursday, the following schools received awards:
- Sunward Park High for the highest number of participants in round 3
- Thoko Thaba Secondary School for the most disciplined team
- Hoerskool Elspark won first place and got a medal and a certificate
- Sunward Park High School got second and third place winning certificates and medals
On Friday, these were the following winners:
- Germiston High School got the certificate for the highest number of participants in round 3
- Sanelich Academy got the certificate for the most disciplined team
- Hoerskool Elspark won first and second place, and got medals and certificates
- Sunward Park High Performance won third place
Jansen Michele, from Hoerskool Elspark, the school that won first and second place, said, “We are extremely proud of our learners as they worked really hard to obtain these achievements. Winning the Spelling Bee competition in 2024 motivated them to retain the title as defending champions.”
She mentioned how they practised daily during break and at home, with their coaches being learners belonging to the school’s “English club” that consists of grade 11 and 12 learners.
She emphasized on the importance of knowing how to spell, as it helps learners immensely with reading, pronunciation and comprehension, and with boosting their confidence when having to read in front of an audience.
Congratulations to the following learners for putting Hoerskool Elspark to greater heights:
GET Phase:
Nkosana Thwala (1st place)
Makgauta Mphirime, Natasha Chambale, Oratilwe Choma
FET Phase:
Oratilwe Mokete (1st place)
Lesego Mokete (2nd place)
Oyena Nyamende, Lethukukhanya Melgas and Unathi Sithole
Hoerskool Elspark is part of the four schools that entered the competition in 2024 (also hosted by Sunward Park High), where they won 1st and 3rd place in the GET Phase, and 1st and 2nd place in the FET phase.
The fact that they managed to retain the title as defending champions in 2025, Jansen said, it’s what makes them stand out, as well as their learners’ commitment, dedication, hard work and passion. Support and encouragement from their acting principal, Ms A. Pretorius and Cultural Head, Ms M Jansen. She added to say, “We are really a school of opportunities!”
They plan on retaining their title ad Spelling Bee Champions, but wish to attract more learners to develop a passion for spelling, reading and writing.
Stakeholders of the Spelling Bee Competition included, but not limited to, the gospel artist, Nnana Komape who opened up with a song and a prayer, Habitat 61 who offered to take quality photos and capture memories, teachers and principals in Ekurhuleni who responded swiftly to the invitation and ensured their teams came fit, braced for a good fight. And, last but not least, Cluster leader, Ms Mpho.
For further information, contact Thuli Mashadi: 076 465 2114
