How it works
This spelling bee score sheet is the record keeper's. Mark every word right or missed, write the word that put a speller out, and the sheet counts the words each one spelled right.
Read the full guide
Mark each turn as the judges rule
Type the spellers' names over Speller 1, Speller 2 and so on, in the order they spell. After each turn, type 1 or an x in that round's box when the spelling is accepted and 0 when it is not, then write the missed word in the last box of the row. Ten spellers are on the sheet; Add a speller takes it to 24.
A small bee, or one that runs long
Small bee: more rounds turns the sheet for 2 to 12 spellers: names across the top and a line for each round, with Add a round under the last for as long as the bee runs. A class bee still going after round ten carries on there with the spellers left in.
- Print blank sheet prints the rows on screen. Up to 24 spellers and the rules under them fit one page.
- Running a class bee where nobody goes out? Keep marking every speller each round. The most words right wins.
Questions and answers
How do you score a spelling bee?
Not in points. Each turn is right or wrong, a wrong spelling puts the speller out, and the rounds go on until one speller is left. The record shows who was still in at each round and the word each speller missed.
What happens if everyone misspells in a round?
Nobody goes out. Under the rules suggested for local bees, when no speller left in the bee spells correctly in a round, all of them stay in and a new round begins.
How is the winner of a spelling bee decided?
In the 2027 suggested rules, the one speller who is right in a round where every other speller misses is the champion at once. The 2020 edition asked that speller for one more word first, so check which your bee follows.
How are second and third place decided?
Spellers who go out in the same round are tied for the same place, so equal totals on this sheet share it. Whether to break the tie, and how, is left to the bee's officials.