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National Spelling Bee Champions for the past 10 years
have used some of Hexco's spelling products.
See for yourself how Hexco products fare.
Download our "After A Spell" Newsletter ~ A Recap of the 2009 NSB
DID YOU KNOW? ... Nine of the top 11 contestants in the 2009 National Bee used Hexco products along the way.
Save the Date: National Spelling Bee June 2-4, 2010
Download "CRASH COURSE" Information
National Spelling and Geographic Bee Brochure
2010 Spelling Study List - Download Here
Hexco has been producing products to help students prepare for The National Spelling Bee since 1982. Hexco's spelling products are grouped into two categories, Annual and Advanced. Annual products change every year with the official spelling list published by Scripps. Advanced products are updated about every 5 years and contain words that are likely to be seen in the later rounds of the Bee. Mastering these esoteric words distinguishes a "Champion" from a "really good speller."
Hexco's Personal Spelling Coach Program
This program establishes goals based on your student's individualized needs after an initial assessment period. Weekly assignments are given and require 1-2 hours a day of student study, plus one-on-one quizzing lasting an additional 1-2 hours a week, with the coach, via telephone. In addition to using Hexco products, our coach uses Spelling Made Simple software which allows students to customize their own word lists using The Spelling Rules Books, New Nat's Notes and Verbomania.
Our coach has been developing and editing products for Hexco for the past several years in addition to homeschooling her own children and coaching them on to the Nationals. She is dedicated to helping each child become successful and also keeps parents in the loop by providing feedback and offering suggestions about how they too can participate in the learning process.
This program requires dedication on the part of everyone. Please call for further information to determine if this program is the best option for you and your student. Space is limited. References are available.
Download more Personal Spelling Coach Information
Unlock your potential at the National Spelling Bee
Call HEXCO ACADEMIC ~ 1-800-PAJAMAS
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Congratulations to the 2009 National Spelling Bee Champion
National Champion 2009 - Kavya Shivashankar
Once again the top products are: The Spelling Rules Book, New Nat's Notes and Bee Prepared
Congratulations Kavya! The10th National Champion in a row to use Hexco Products along the way. Kavya Shivashankar started in 2004 with Valerie's Supplement, Nat's Notes, Spelling Rules Book, and Bee Prepared and graduated to study directly from the dictionary for the past several years.
For more information about the 2009 National Spelling Bee read After A Spell, our annual newsletter about the Bee containing articles and advice from some of the spellers who were there. TOP
Annual Products
Valerie's Spelling Bee Supplement contains 2,000+ words. It has all the Spell It! words PLUS words selected by our own word wizards that follow the "Spelling Tips" in Spell It!, are derived from the same language origins, or are just good vocabulary-expanding words. Each word shows definition(s), part(s) of speech, and an easy-to-decipher, phonetic pronunciation. This is updated every year. A reproducible list of words for students to use as their primary study list can be found here.
Valerie's Supplement - $19 single copy
Valerie's Supplement - bulk pricing - 10 or more copies only $9each!
Spelling Mentor software combines both auditory and visual learning techniques, in an interactive format. Students hear the word pronounced, see the phonetic pronunciation(s), definition(s), part(s) of speech, and a carefully crafted sentence. Then they are asked to type in the correct spelling. A click of the mouse causes the audio to repeat, if desired, and individual progress for up to 20 students is tracked. Other features include the ability to preview words, request the next letter, and flag troublesome words. Discounts are available when the Mentor is ordered annually.
Natalie's Spelling Bee Organizers (Graded List and Spell It! List) Both volumes contain a total of over 2,500 words from our extended list in Valerie's Supplement. The words within in each volume are also in difficulty sequence to maintain a fairly level playing field for your bee. Thus the winner will be the student who worked the hardest and learned the most, not just the "luckiest" speller.
Natalie's Spelling Bee Organizers - Full Set $100
Natalie's Spelling Bee Organizer - Graded List - $60
Natalie's Spelling Bee Organizer - Spell It! List - $60
Talking Webster is an audio CD with all the words in the same sequence as Valerie's Supplement. Also available is the "Mini" version, which contains only the words from Spell It!.
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Advanced Materials
Our advanced materials have been popular tools used by many recent champions, including spelling aces Kavya Shivashankar (2009), Sameer Mishra (2008), Evan O'Dourney (2007), Katharine "Kerry" Close (2006), Anurag Kashyap, (2005) Sai Gunturi (2003), Pratyush Buddiga (2002), Sean Conley (2001), and George Thampy (2000).
New Bee Prepared reveals insights gained from coaching spelling at all levels for over 25 years and from attending the National Bee for 10 years. This book is ideal for those aspiring to greater heights or those qualified to go to Washington. The workings of the Bee are scrutinized, off-list word selections are analyzed, study materials are critiqued, strategies for study are presented, along with suggestions for conducting a successful bee. Included is a list of over 35,000 "bee words" which in 2008 contained 71% of all surprise words in D.C. and a large number of the off-list words given at the Regional Bees!
"New" Bee Prepared - $45
The Spelling Rules Book is an exhaustive collection of spelling rules, conventions, tricks, and rules-of-thumb is a sine qua non for competitive spellers or anyone interested in raising his or her "word consciousness." Topics are covered to help in giving educated "guesses" on whether to use -ie/-ei, -ible/-able, or -us/-ous, or other suffixes and spellings. Latin and Greek elements are presented via the encyclopedic list of roots, prefixes, and suffixes with words exemplifying usage of each. Patterns of spelling for words from many foreign languages are explained, including French, Spanish, German, Japanese, and Italian. It also includes a catch-all section on other languages that have melded into English, such as Turkish, Arabic, Hebrew, Russian, Portuguese, Welsh, and a few others. Of particular interest to competitive spellers are the fun lists of words, such as words whose pronunciation doesn't obviate the first letter (bdelloid, cnemial, ngege, tjaele, and the like), words derived for Greek and Roman myths, words with bizarre double letters, like kk, aa, jj, etc.
Spelling Rules Book - $75
New Nat's Notes, with over 18,000 words, geared toward those aiming for the highest reaches of study and competition. While New Nat's has the bulk of the more difficult words from Scripps' consolidated list, there are nearly 7,000 words of this ilk from other sources. In New Nat's Notes, ALL the words have pronunciations, definitions, and expanded etymology! The original volume regularly contained approximately 60% of the off-list words given at the higher-level bees, and this collection tops that percentage for words in the difficult rounds of The National Bee. And yes, Scripps word wizards regularly "reuse" words from old bees and books, so it pays to study them!
New Nat's Notes is now available in difficulty sequence as well as alphabetical sequence per customer request. Some students prefer the easiest to hardest method of study, so we revised the dictionary-format alpha sequence into a shortest to longest word sequence, and that longest word takes longer to spell than define!
As a special offer to our loyal customers, those who would like to trade in their original Nat's Notes will receive a $100 credit towards purchase of New Nat's Notes.
New Nat's Notes - $150
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Etyma Mentors are for serious students seeking to augment spelling skills and expand vocabulary; the mentor is a powerful, interactive program. With modules available for Basic Latin, Intermediate Latin, and Basic Greek, this program creates a solid basis for vocabulary and spelling skills, and it gives the students the confidence to guess at the spelling of an unfamiliar word while at a spelling bee or at a definition of a Latin or Greek based word while reading or taking the SAT. Each version coaches the students on 150 roots, 50 prefixes and 25 suffixes, in either Latin or Greek. For each word part, the definition is given, the Latin or Greek word of origin is given with its definition, and four words, two of which are commonplace, are given to illustrate its use in English.
The companion Etyma Notes booklets contain all the same information in a printed format for use away from the computer. Each copy of the software is packaged with its corresponding copy of Etyma Notes.
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EtymaNotes (only) - Individual Volumes - $20 ea. |
Your Choice: Basic Latin, Intermediate Latin |
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or Basic Greek |
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Verbomania is defined as a passion, craze, or obsession with words. This text is the granddaddy of all vocabulary lists for SAT & PSAT preparation. With over 13,000 vocabulary words, it is the only SAT vocabulary prep book you will need, and it includes pronunciations, definitions, and part of speech for each word. Verbomania was developed primarily for vocabulary enrichment, however, there are 7,500 words from Scripps' consolidated list that meet vocabulary enrichment criteria, so they've been included. Thus, Verbomania is an extraordinary tool for SAT preparation that carries over into National Bee study!
Verbomania Alpha Sequence - $75
Verbomania Difficulty Sequence - $90
Written Round Readiness was developed to help National Bee Qualifiers prepare for the all-important written round and is designed in the format of the tests given at past National Bee Written Rounds.
Three volumes are currently available. These work in a computerized format similar to the format used at the National Spelling Bee. Each word is pronounced while a screen shows definition, parts of speech, sentence, and etymology. The speller then enters his or her spelling and goes to the next word. After the test is completed speller is shown all the words with his or her spelling along with the correct spellings. Also included is a pronouncer's sheet in case a student would prefer to have a parent or coach speak the words in person. The difficulty level of the words is much like the level of words at the National Bee with some being relatively familiar, some being from study lists of esoteric words, and some being from the dictionary itself which have not been used at National Bees previously. Written Round Readiness probably contains more of the latter, very difficult words than the National Bee written test. The intent is to give students the best possible preparation and stretch their skills.
Written Round Readiness $75
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Need more tips for studying for the National Spelling Bee?
Read Bailey Shoemaker Richards' Article - "How to Study for a Spelling Bee"
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