Angelina Deonarine and Antwon Henry did their school proud when their hard work lead Ketley Primary School to successfully defend its title as the champion in the finals of the Ministry of Education (MoE) 2nd ‘Literacy Bee’ Competition, which concluded on Saturday at the National Cultural Centre.
The Literacy Bee Competition was last held in 2020, when it was won by Ketley Primary School. The competition was opened to students at the Grade Five level.
Deonarine, 10, and Henry, also the same age, amassed 86 points for Ketley Primary School to prevail over second place finisher Patentia Primary School from the West Bank Demerara, which finished with 53 points, while Auchlyne Primary from Corentyne Berbice finished with 43 points.

Patentia Primary was represented by 10-year-olds Aiden George and Makayla Harding, while the representing Auchlyne students were Purnell Luke and Hannah Mahadeo. The students were the top performers, having completed a preliminary round and semi-finals in the competition.
A total of six schools had participated in the competition. Aside from the finalists, there were St. Cuthbert’s Primary from Region Four, Christianburg Primary from Region 10 and Seventy Two Miles Primary from Region Seven.
The schools were each allowed two pupils per team.
Taking a format similar to the well-known “Spelling Bee”, the “Literacy Bee” however incorporated a wider cross section of literacy topics outside of just the rudimentary spelling. In addition to spelling, the competition saw the students also being quizzed on vocabulary and comprehension areas such as synonyms, abbreviations and forming anagrams.
Assistant Chief Education Officer (Literacy), Samantha Williams shared that the competition supports the MoE’s mandate by providing a platform for learners to showcase their talents.
“The National Literacy Bee Competition is a great initiative that provides a platform for pupils to showcase how they acquire and master literacy skills. Through the competition, the pupils can connect to the curriculum in meaningful ways and reinforce concepts that have been taught across the curriculum,” she noted.
“It is the first integrative competition that allows pupils to demonstrate how they are learning and mastering concepts at the Grade Five level. The pupils who participate in this competition get an opportunity to practice their skills and it’s also a chance for teachers to engage in reflective practice as they observe the errors made by their pupils. These errors they can later correct through various strategies in the classroom,” said Williams.