fpw Wrote:The amazing thing is how many of the kids are 1st generation Americans; English is a second language for their parents. It's about competition, obsession, and very much about the American dream. Seven of the kids are sweet and charming; one is completely obnoxious (you'll immediately know who), but I wouldn't be surprised if he has a neurological disorder (maybe a Tourette's variant).I found that I learned to understand English a lot better once I started taking a foreign language (German) in High School. I understood the parts of speech and structure of sentences a lot better than I had before. I had/have always been good with English, but I learning a foreign language helped immensely. I am (naturally) a good speller so I can't speak directly of that, but maybe that is why "1st generation Americans" are good spellers.
jimbow8 Wrote:I found that I learned to understand English a lot better once I started taking a foreign language (German) in High School.
jimbow8 Wrote:But maybe learning the language with spellings and meanings has an advantage to normal child's learning words as a toddler and not having written words to associate the spoken word with.
Does any of that make sense?
fpw Wrote:[SIZE=3]This film is a documentary about the 1999 National Spelling Bee. It follows 8 kids from regional contests to the Nat'l finals. Sounds like a terrible bore, right? That's what I said when someone recommended it. Then someone else recommended it. So I gave it a shot.
Gripping from the git-go.
fpw Wrote:English is a ployglot language (much of it Germanic in origin, btw). So knowing another European language can only bolster your English. But I can't see any benefit from having parents who speak Hindi or Urdu.