Whiz Kid's Name, Age: Riju Datta, 9
Whiz Kid's School: Independent Day School-Corbett Campus
Whiz Kid's Accomplishment: Third grader Riju Datta won the IDS school-wide Spelling Bee in February. He represented IDS at the Scripps Regional Spelling Bee in March as the competition’s youngest participant and took third place.
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Whiz Kid's Key to Awesomeness: Kim Rostick, IDS Spelling Bee coordinator said, “What is most memorable for me is Riju’s humility and confidence during a heated competition.”
Eighth grade IDS English teacher Michael Vokoun, one of the spelling bee judges, said, "Riju knocked my socks off! He was so calm and focused on his task, and he topped many students who were in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades."
When asked what happens when he spells a word, Riju explained, "I see the word in my head, and then I spell it.”
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Riju is also gifted in mathematics, participating in sixth grade mathematics class in addition to his own grade-level math class. According to his teacher, Ann Cashen, Riju is talented in both mathematics and language arts, but is also extremely modest.
Though everyone at IDS agrees that Riju is an incredible competitor, his true key to awesomeness comes from his eagerness to help his classmates, to offer support and encouragement in the most humble of ways.
As a result, when IDS recognized Riju’s success at the regional Spelling Bee at an all-school assembly, he received a spontaneous, prolonged, and heartfelt standing ovation.