Howard County 5th Grader Competes In National Spelling Bee This Week

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — On Tuesday, Ilchester Elementary School fifth grader Christian Cherian will go up against the best of the best in the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Representing Howard County in the spelling bee, 11-year-old Christian's favorite subject actually happens to be math. But his grasp of language and spelling, honed by traveling to 12 different countries, has propelled him to the top for this spelling bee.

"I worked really hard to get to nationals so I was really excited to know that I won the county," Christian told WMAR.

The Howard County student dreams of becoming an engineer and believes spelling will help him be a well-rounded engineer who's proficient in math and English. He's also excited to follow in his sister's footsteps as she once competed in the Scripps National Spelling Bee, too.

"When my sister Teresa went to the nationals I was really excited for her. It inspired me to go up on stage and spell," Christian said.

Christian will compete against 233 others at nationals May 31 through June 2 at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center at the National Harbor.