New Lambton South student Wafiq Ayyash chases second state spelling title
NSW Government media releases(NSW Government media releases)
Newy 87.8 FM – A Year 5 student from New Lambton South Public School is aiming for a second state title at the 2026 NSW Premier's Spelling Bee state finals at Penrith's Q Theatre.
Wafiq Ayyash won the junior state title in 2024 and is now competing in the senior division in his third consecutive finals appearance.
He is one of seven returning competitors among the 34 senior finalists, and one of five students competing at the state finals for a third time.
The 68 junior and senior finalists, from Years 2 to 6, represent the top 0.03 per cent of around 210,000 students who took part in school spelling bees across more than 1,070 NSW public schools this year.
Finalists earned their place by winning 68 online regional finals in August, which saw around 2,100 students compete.
This year's youngest competitor is Year 2 student Oliver Reid from Tallimba Public School, while Layla Clayton from Bungwahl Public School on the Mid North Coast is the junior division's sole returning finalist.
Contestants will begin by spelling words from lists supplied by Macquarie Dictionary before progressing to increasingly challenging unseen words.
The Premier's Spelling Bee was launched in 2004 for students to engage with spelling and literacy.
"The Premier's Spelling Bee is about so much more than spelling. It helps students build confidence, develop their vocabulary and discover the joy of language," the NSW Government media release said.
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