OFFICIAL RULES FOR SPELLING BEE MOROCCO™ 2013 Eligibility All Moroccan students of English as a second language are encouraged to participate in Spelling Bee Morocco. Spelling Bee Morocco is open to students through the last year of the baccalaureate. Students may not have reached the age of 20 before May 1, 2013. Students may not register individually, but must participate in a school or dar chebab competition, from which the highest placing individuals advance to succeeding levels of competition. Students participating in the Novice Team Competition may not yet have completed 9th grade or reached the age of 16 before May 1, 2013. There is no lower age limit for participation. Both public and private schools and dar chebabs are eligible to register for Spelling Bee Morocco. Dictionary of Record The Macmillan English Dictionary for Advanced Learners is the dictionary of record for the competition. All words used in the competition can be found in the in the MEDAL. The MEDAL will be the final word on any disputes involving spelling. In cases where American and British spelling differs, spellers may use either one. Homonyms: If a word has a homonym, the pronouncer will note that and provide the definition of the desired word when he or she gives the word. If the pronouncer fails to do that, and the speller provides the correct spelling of any of the homonyms, it will be considered correct. Official Rules for the Spelling Bee Morocco™ Team Spelling Bee 1. No, cell phones or other electronic devices are allowed during the competition. 2. Teams consist of three spellers. Each team receives a dry erase board and marker 3. In each round, all teams spell the same word. 4. The pronouncer will give the word and repeat the word. 5. Any of the teams may ask for clarification, such as part of speech or definition or to have the word repeated,

but only one time. 6. Once the word has been pronounced and any questions answered, the judges will start the timer. 7. Teams have 30 seconds to decide on the correct spelling and write it clearly on their board. 8. Team members may confer about the proper spelling and they may use pen and paper in figuring out their

spelling. 9. When time is called all teams show their boards and keep them visible until a judge has inspected it and

declared the spelling to be correct or incorrect. 10. Continuing to write after time has been called, or failure to show your board after time has been called, will be

considered a misspelling. Illegible or ambiguous writing may also result in a misspelling. 11. Teams are eliminated after the third misspelling. 12. If a team misses a round, it will be considered a misspelling. 13. The last team remaining is the winner. If any teams are tied for one of the top three places, the judges will hold

separate rounds to determine their place of finish.

Official Rules for the Spelling Bee MoroccoTM Novice Team Spelling Bee 14. The Novice team spelling bee is conducted in exactly the same way as the Team Bee, except that age and class

limits as spelled out in Eligibility apply. 15. The Novice Team Spelling Bee will be held only at the District Championship Level. 16. Participants in the Novice Team Bee are eligible and encouraged to compete in both the Team Bee and Solo

Bee at the District Level.

Official Rules for the Spelling Bee Morocco™ Solo Spelling Bee 1. No, cell phones or other electronic devices are allowed during the competition. 2. Spellers will be assigned numbers at random to determine the order of spelling. In each round, the speller must

be present when his or her number is up. Failure to be present will be considered a misspelling. 3. In each round, spellers receive one word to spell. If they spell it correctly, they continue to the next round. If

incorrectly, they are eliminated, and must leave the stage. 4. Spellers may not receive help of any sort from other spellers or members of the audience. If that occurs, the

speller will be disqualified. 5. When it is their turn, spellers should approach the microphone and face the judges. 6. The speller should repeat the word to make sure they have heard it correctly (failure to repeat the word will

not result in disqualification) 7. After the pronouncer has given the word, the speller may ask

a. To have the word repeated b. The part of speech c. The definition d. To hear the word used in a sentence

8. Having once begun to spell, the speller may start over, but may not change the letters or order of letters they have spelled.

9. When finished, the speller should repeat the word so the judges know they are done. (Failure to do so will not result in disqualification.)

10. Spellers must use the names of the letters in the English alphabet, not the sound of the letters or the names of the letters in French or any other language that uses the Roman alphabet.

11. Spellers must spell each letter. They may not use “double _” or any other shorthand in their spelling. For example, HALL must be spelled H-A-L-L, not H-A-double L.

12. A speller’s failure to start spelling when asked by the judges may result in disqualification, as will failure to complete the spelling within a reasonable length of time.

13. The competition continues until there is only one speller left, and he or she is the winner. If there are spellers tied for the other places, the judges will hold additional rounds among those spellers to determine the order of finish.

14. The rules change slightly when the competition gets down to two spellers, or when all but one speller misspells in the round. At that time, the remaining speller must correctly spell another word in a round of one. If he or she does not, all the spellers in the preceding round remain in the competition. In other words, the competition continues until the final speller spells two words in a row.

15. Any challenges to judges’ decisions must be made before a speller would have been scheduled to receive his or her next word. In case of such a challenge, the judges will confer and render a decision on the appeal. The decision of the judges is final.