The Spelling Contest
Joyce fidgeted in her seat. She could not wait for the contest to start. She was going to take part in the first spelling contest in school.
Joyce pricked up her ears when the buzzer sounded. The contest had begun! She sat at the edge of her seat and kept her hand on the bell in front of her. The first scrambled word appeared on the screen in front of her. Joyce knew what it was immediately. She was so excited that she forgot to press the bell. She jumped up from her seat and waved her hands in the air.
“Tropical! The answer is ‘tropical!” shouted Joyce delightedly.
All the contestants turned to stare at her. The audience burst out laughing. At that moment, Joyce realized what she had done wrong. Her cheeks turned bright red and she quickly sat down. She was about to press the bell but it was too late. Someone else spelled the word ‘tropical’. There was applause in the hall but some people were still giggling.
Joyce sat very still throughout the rest of the contest. She kept her hand on the bell and made sure she did not shout out any answer again.
