By Anne Trautner
Staff Writer
Keenan Wiley, a seventh grader at Randall School, won Randall’s annual geography bee on Jan. 13, and will now take a written test to qualify for the Wisconsin state bee.
“It is really, really neat to have a seventh grader win this year because, even if he doesn’t move on, he gets the exposure and the experience, and so next year he will be even more prepared for the bee,” said Karen Reddin, who coordinates the geography bee for the school.
Ten finalists from grades 4-8 competed in Randall’s bee. Ana Bishop, a sixth grader, finished in second place and seventh-grader Blake Zager came in third place for the school.
The school bee, for which students answered questions on geography, was the first round in the 27th annual National Geographic Bee. Thousands of schools around the United States and in the five U.S. territories are participating in the 2015 Geography Bee.
For the next step in the competition, the school champions, including Keenan, will each take a written test. Up to 100 of the top scorers on that test will be eligible to compete in the Wisconsin State Bee on March 27.
Randall has been competing in the geography bee for about 15 years, Reddin said.
“It is just really a wonderful experience, and I am really glad Randall offers it,” Reddin said.
Last year was the first time a Randall student moved on to state, when Samuel Wank, now a freshman at Wilmot, competed.
“It was really exciting to see our kids are ranking high with the state, so we are hopeful for this year too,” Reddin said.
To prepare for the test, Randall’s junior high teachers begin each day with 10 geography and current event questions each day, Reddin said. Most of the questions are taken directly from the National Geographic website, she said.