Since 1925, children across America have participated in classroom, school, and regional spelling bees with the hope of making it to the Scripps National Spelling Bee. More than 10 million students will start a Spelling Bee journey this fall. In February and March, school champions from around the nation will compete in Regional Qualifier and Regional Competitions. The champions of these spelling bees will join the National Competition in May.
Students can practice for these competitions while they play the Bee’s spelling and vocabulary games. The activities include all 450 words from the 2027 School Spelling Bee Study List, along with the 4,000 words in Words of the Champions. The games and wordlists are available to download for free from the Word Club app via the Apple Store and Google Play.
All the words in the School Spelling Bee Study List are also included in the list of books on Bee’s Bookshelf. These books are handpicked by the Bee’s editorial team and released at the beginning of each school year. Bee’s Bookshelf monthly newsletter provides exclusive author videos, mini spelling lists, and monthly book giveaways.
In addition, spellers and wordsmiths aged 7 and up can get ready to compete by playing the new Bee Bingo board game with a twist on the classic Bingo game. Each Bee Bingo card contains a word and asks players to correctly spell it, define it, name its origin or part of speech, find its correct synonym, and use it in a sentence. Spaces on the Bee Bingo boards match directives such as “spell,” “define,” and “synonym.” A comprehensive rule book includes instructions for the standard game plus a dozen fun variations to keep gameplay fresh. The rule book also breaks down the easy and hard word levels so players can choose their difficulty.
Enrollment in the Scripps National Spelling Bee program for the 2026–2027 school year is open until January 29, 2027. Enroll your elementary or middle school for $199 until November 30, 2026, and receive everything you need to start your students on a spelling bee journey—from study lists and competition guides to access for parents to the new Spelling Bee Resource Center. Enrollment also provides your school’s champion with a pathway to compete in your community’s regional program and beyond.
If you enroll your school on or before September 30, 2026, your school will receive two free one-year subscriptions to Britannica Online for Kids to award to two students at your school. If you enroll your school in the Bee on or after October 1, 2026, your school will receive one free one-year subscription to Britannica Online for Kids to award to one student at your school.
Start your students’ journey to the Bee stage today.