The 90th Scripps National Spelling Bee promises to be more difficult than any of the 89 bees that preceded it.
The bee got underway Tuesday morning when 291 well-read elementary- and middle-schoolers gathered at a convention center outside Washington to take a written test. The nerve-wracking exam goes a long way toward determining who will be among the 50 or so spellers to advance past Wednesday's preliminary rounds.
PREVIOUS: DC tween speller stumps reporter
Last year, the bee extended the final rounds and made the championship words tougher in an attempt to avoid a third straight tie. But two spellers still ended up sharing the title.
This year, the top spellers will take another written test that will be used as a tiebreaker if necessary.
