Austin He’s 11 years old – with typical 11-year-old hobbies, such as building Lego kits, collecting Pokemon cards, drawing comics and playing with his brother Daniel.
Less typical, however, is the Quispamsis student’s talent for memorization.
Take the whole periodic table, which he memorized in a week. Or the names and flags of every country in the world, from which he can recognize all “except maybe two or three.”
He is currently working on the capitals of all 195 countries.
“My father made me test my memory and it was obviously so good that it went out of the charts,” said Austin, who is in 5th grade at Fairvale Elementary School in Rothesay.
WATCH / Julia Wright of CBC encounters spelling magic
How do you handle 5th grade spelling?
Austin Hee at St. John’s is on his way to the 35th annual Canadian Spelling Championship.
Austin’s stellar ability to remember information brought him top 50 in the Canadian Kangaroo Mathematical Competition for four consecutive years – and most recently, first place for the Atlantic Region in Canada’s Spelling Bee series of virtual virtual games from coast to coast competitions.
He is now the only New Brunswick student selected to compete in the 35th Annual Canadian Spelling Championship on June 12, 2022 in Toronto.
“I’m a little excited about the spelling bee and a little nervous,” said Austin, who won first place in the Atlantic with the word opponent.
11-year-old Austin Hee is studying his words with his father Forrest. The Fairvale Elementary School student will travel to Toronto on June 12 to compete in the Spelling Bee of Canada. (Julia Wright / CBC)
Not always smooth sailing
Before Austin entered 1st grade, his parents, Forest Hee and Yang Guo, realized he could remember things – like books and signs – days after seeing them.
“It really caught our attention, realizing that Austin has this ability better than other children of the same age,” He said.
With that in mind, “it wasn’t always smooth for Austin.”
Because he is at a different level than some other children his age, he sometimes loses interest in the subject.
“We’ve often heard that Austin isn’t fully committed to his class,” he said.
“Since we returned to St. John’s and joined Fairvale Elementary School, we have received much more support from the school. I would say that the school has done a very good job of guiding Austin’s learning and growth, which is also a big factor in his recent victory. ”
Austin and the French language teacher for 4th and 5th grade Mrs. Connie Culligan, who says Austin taught her a lot during her time in her classroom, especially binary code and pixel art, are two of his favorite subjects. (Julia Wright / CBC)
4th and 5th grade French teacher Connie Culligan says Austin is “fantastic to have in class.”
“I look forward to coming to school every day to work with Austin. As much as I can give him information to learn, he can challenge me just as easily.”
To keep him busy in class, Culligan hired Austin as an unofficial teaching assistant.
“The kids are really watching Austin,” she said.
They know that if they need help with editing, they can go to him. If there’s something in math that they don’t understand and I’m busy, they can ask. “
His abilities are “seen as something we admire, not as a difference.”
Additional responsibilities also keep Austin sharp.
“My classmates usually use me as a human dictionary when we write, although there are about 20 dictionaries on the other side of the room,” Austin said.
Pneumonic ultramicroscopic silicovolcanoconiosis
In the weeks before the national championship, Austin is up to date with practical tests and training at home with his parents.
“It didn’t take him long to complete the basic study material. He was just happy to go to the Oxford Dictionary, “said his father.
According to Austin, the “coolest word” he has learned is pneumonic ultramicroscopic silicovolcanoconiosis, which is a lung disease caused by inhaling silica dust. It’s a bite, but there are always bigger challenges.
Austin He, whose birthday is at Christmas, shows one of the Lego sets he loves to build. (Submitted by Forest He)
“The longest word in the world is 189,819 letters long and takes three and a half hours [to spell]”Austin said.
But he has more important things to focus on right now.
“I probably won’t spend three and a half hours saying a word.”
Some shorter words, he said, can also be difficult. In the race in the Atlantic, some of the words he found challenging included a floppy disk and an opponent.
It is broadcast live on CBC Sports
Austin’s goal in Spelling Bee of Canada, according to his parents, is not necessarily to win.
“Our advice to Austin is that being part of the national competition is already a huge achievement,” Forrest said.
“So you can just be yourself on stage and enjoy the spelling that you really like, instead of having to win something. We’ll be happy if you win, but that’s not something we hope for.”
Austin He with his parents Yang Guo and Forrest He. They stressed that the Spelling Bee race in Canada is not all about winning. “Being part of the national competition is already a huge achievement.” (Julia Wright / CBC)
Inevitably, there is some pressure on performance at the national level. But he has “different strategies” for dealing with nerves.
“The last thing I used was just to repeat the periodic table in my head,” He said.
The 35th Annual Canadian Spelling Championship will be held in person on Sunday, June 12, at Beeton Hall at the Toronto Reference Library. The event will be broadcast live on CBC Sports at 11:00 Atlantic.
Add Comment