Portland's spellers.
PORTLAND IS not the strongest parish when it comes to the National Finals of The Gleaner's Spelling Bee. But one school that seems keen on ruling the roost is Bradford Prep.
The school now boasts the last three parish champions and coach, Handel Taylor, is keen to continue that: "My formula is basically hard work and strong motivation. I motivate the children by showing them the benefits that spelling can give later on in life," he said.
He has no problem passing this philosophy on Cherice Dunbar the school's latest champion. "She follows instructions and she always puts in the extra effort apart from our studies."
Things seem set to blossom even further for the school as their spelling bee club is five years old. No coincidence that they have three champions already. In terms of national competition, he feels that every parish is good but singled out spellers from St. Andrew and Montego Bay in St. James.
How does he feel about their chances in Kingston? "Well, it's hard to tell but I am hoping for the best."
