Edwin Callendar, a fifth-grader at Sollars Elementary School at Misawa Air Base, Japan, is all smiles Friday after winning the school's National Geographic geography bee. He'll compete against other Department of Defense Dependents Schools students for a chance to represent DODDS at the national bee Washington, D.C., in May. (Jennifer H. Svan / S&S)
MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan — Fifth-grader Edwin Callendar couldn’t wipe the smile from his face Friday after winning Sollars Elementary School’s National Geographic Bee.
“If you traveled from the Caribbean to Japan, you could save thousands of miles by going through what canal?”
With two grandfathers living in Panama, Callendar barely paused before writing down the winning answer to edge out fourth-grader Joseph Woodcock.
“The only reason I got the Panama question is I’m from Panama,” Callendar said after the assembly. “That’s the only canal I know.”
Callendar beat eight fellow students in grades four through six to stay alive in the national competition. On Wednesday, he’ll take a written geography test that will be sent to National Geographic Society headquarters. He’ll be graded against other school finalists in grades four through eight throughout Department of Defense Dependents Schools, said Sollars’ social studies teacher Lelia Huffman, who organized her school’s bee.
The top 10 DODDS students will take another written test, and the winner will represent DODDS in the National Geographic Bee in Washington, D.C., May 24 to 25.
The national champion walks away with a $15,000 college scholarship, $500 in cash and a chance to play on Teen Jeopardy.
“DODDS kids have an advantage of living in another country. Still, some may only see Asia, some may only see Europe,” Huffman said. “This whole thing is to give every child an opportunity to be more of a world citizen, to understand the world and how geography relates to the world.”
The society, on its Web site, www.nationalgeographic.com, states the contest is designed to encourage teachers to include geography in their classrooms, to spark student interest and to increase public awareness.
It’s the second year Sollars has participated in the geography bee. Schools must register with National Geographic Society for $50, and the society provides questions, written tests, rules and other contest materials.
The nine finalists on stage at Sollars on Friday were the top geography experts in their grade and nabbed a spot in the school’s championship. Some said they studied hard for the competition, devouring packets of past years’ test questions and participating in classroom study groups.
“It is fun, but it’s a lot of work to study,” said sixth-grader and bee finalist Austin Van Hoesen, who estimated he hit the books about an hour a day every other day for several weeks.
Contestants were allowed to miss two answers. They had 15 seconds per question. Van Hoesen was stumped by this question: The Delmarva Peninsula includes Delaware and parts of Virginia and what other state? Answer: Maryland.
“I wished I had studied more,” Van Hoesen said. “I should have listened to my parents.”
Nerves appeared to get the better of some pupils. There were deep sighs and anxious twitching on stage. Van Hoesen said it was the first time he stood at a microphone. With his parents and their friends in the audience, not to mention almost half the student body, teachers and a panel of two military judges and a timekeeper, “it’s pretty nervous,” he said.
Contestants received a certificate of participation and prizes.
Huffman, who credited her principal, Tom LaRue, for giving her time to organize the bee, hopes more students will participate next year.
“I am thrilled with the kids’ interest,” she said. “Now that they’ve seen how fun it can be, I hope that they really decide ‘I’m going to be involved.’”
