CARMEL, Ind. -- More than 500 spellers are preparing to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee May 29-31, including six Hoosier students.
Vanessa Xiao lives in Carmel and is an eighth-grade student at Park Tudor School.
Being a good speller runs in her family, her brother Victor also made it to the National Spelling Bee four years ago.
"I get to learn about so many different things,” said Xiao. “I get to expand my vocabulary and because it's just really fun to learn new words and explore the meanings."
We asked each contestant six questions ahead of the big competition.
You can hear Vanessa Xiao’s answers by watching the video player below.
READ | Scripps National Spelling Bee hasrecordnumber of spellers for 2018
This year’s contestants, 516 of them to be exact, make up a record year for the Scripps National Spelling Bee and come from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Department of Defense Schools in Europe and eight other countries: the Bahamas, Canada, Ghana, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom.
The spellers range in age from 8 to 15.
RELATED | 12-year-old crowned championship speller at 2017 Bee | Photos: 2017 Scripps National Spelling Bee
The prizes for the Champion include:
- $40,000 cash prize (if co-champs, both winners get $40,000)
- Engraved trophy
- $2,500 cash prize and complete reference library from Merriam-Webster
- Reference works and three-year online membership from Encyclopaedia Britannica
- Trip to New York City to appear on “Live with Kelly and Ryan,” which airs weekday mornings in national syndication
- Trip to Hollywood to appear on ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” which airs weeknights at 11:35 p.m. Eastern/10:35 Central (pending availability)
- A pizza party for the Champion’s school presented by Pizza Hut
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