The Great UHLS Spell-Off – Preliminary Team Spelling Bee

WHEN: Monday, April 10, 2023 from 6:00pm – 8:00pm

WHERE: Albany Public Library – Pine Hills Branch, in the Large Meeting Room, 517 Western Ave, Albany, NY

COST: FREE

TRAVEL: Walk or if you live farther, you can take the 114.

Create a 2-person team and compete in a traditional spelling bee at the Pine Hills Branch! The winning team will be eligible to compete against other local winners in the The Great UHLS Spell-Off, held at the William K. Sanford (Colonie) Town Library on Saturday 4/30 at 2:30pm. UHLS = Upper Hudson Library System.

You must register below to participate or sit in the audience. We will start promptly at 6:00pm.

This event is primarily for adults. High schoolers can form teams. Children 10-13 can be on a team with an adult 18+. Children under age 10 may attend, but cannot participate.

You and/or your teammate may only participate in one preliminary bee held at a UHLS library in March or April 2023. 

Teams will first participate in a group portion where they have 30 seconds to decide on the spelling of the word, write it down, and share it with the judge. We’ll continue presenting words and eliminating teams who spell incorrectly until approximately 5 teams are left. Eliminated teams can stay and watch the next portion.

Next, the remaining teams will participate in a spotlight portion, similar to a traditional spelling bee. You and your teammate have 30 seconds to determine the spelling of a word. One of you will recite the spelling for the audience. If you misspell, you are eliminated. The final team will win and be eligible to participate in the The Great UHLS Spell-Off. If that team can’t make it, the runner up will be invited, and so on.