KUALA LUMPUR: Advertising executive Julian Kok keeps his two young boys,
Ethan James and Ian James, entertained during car trips with mini
spelling bees.

Though 11-year-old Ethan would normally beat his 6-year-old brother,
Kok makes sure there are easier words for Ian to tackle, too.

When Kok heard of the Spell-It-Right (SIR) challenge jointly organised
by the New Straits Times and RHB Bank Berhad, he knew this was something
Ethan could go for.

The Year Five pupil from SRK (C) Yuk Chai in Taman Megah, Petaling
Jaya, already has an expansive vocabulary acquired from voracious
reading.

"English is one of my favourite subjects - I like reading very much,"
said Ethan, adding that ghost stories, mysteries and thrillers were his
top picks.

He also enjoys reading manga comics that have been translated into
English, which his parents buy in Singapore.

For him, the habit might have come from his dad, whose collection of
magazines and books are displayed in a floor-to-ceiling bookcase in the
living room.

"The spelling challenge is a good way to try and bring up the level of
English in the country," said Kok, adding that language competency in
schools today seemed to have declined from when he was a student.

He said that anything which could help raise the standard of English in
schools was good - whether it was to encourage the reading of all kinds
of literature or watching television shows in English.

SIR is divided into two categories - primary schools and secondary
schools - and will be conducted in two stages - the State Challenge and
the National Challenge.

The State Challenge is open to 36 schools. Each school can send a
maximum of four representatives. Nine top spellers will compete for the
championship title in the state finals.

Only the top spellers in the primary and secondary school categories
will represent their states in the National Challenge, which will be held
in Kuala Lumpur in August.

In the primary school category, the state champion, first and second
runners-up will win RM1,000, RM800 and RM500 for themselves and the same
amount for their schools.

In the secondary school category, the state champion, first and second
runners-up will bag RM2,000, RM1,500 and RM1,000 respectively for
themselves and the same amount for their schools.

At the national level, the top winners will win RM3,000, RM2,000 and
RM1,000, with the same amount going to the respective top schools.

For further information on SIR, look out for entry forms in the NST.