Visit the official spelling bee website to register for the competition in your local area. This website also gives information on how to start one if there is not one available and how to ask for sponsorship.
Pick up the suggested material to study with and spend hours studying well in advance to try and win the spelling bee. Don't procrastinate. This information can be found on the official national spelling bee website.
Learn how to spell words in a timely fashion. Participants get about 2 1/2 minutes to spell a word.
Know the origins of words. It can be the difference between words ending in "isk" for an Anglo-Greek word or "esk" if it's Swahili. Picking up "Merriam-Webster's A Dictionary of Prefixes, Suffixes, and Combining Forms" from a local bookstore or online will help you with this step.
Have the judge to use the word in a sentence or provide the definition and origin, if unsure of the context the word is being used in during the spelling bee.
Ask for permission to start over. If you start to stammer while spelling a word, it may be helpful to begin again. Do not change the order of the letters that have already been spoken out loud.
Be aware that there will be camera crews and media at the National Spelling Bee, as well as some local events, but staying focused can help anyone succeed in winning the title.