On Saturday, January 5, homeschooled students from across the Roanoke Valley gathered at the Blue Ridge Library to compete in the National Geographic Geography Bee sponsored by the Greater Roanoke Home Educators (GRHE). Jonathan Karbach, Elijah Karbach, Alex Smith, Tessa Yarbrough, Khean Mikkelson and Hannah Scott participated.

Tessa Yarbrough is our champion this year. She is twelve years old and in the 7th grade. Her interests include reading, favoring books such as The Inheritance Cycle and Harry Potter, and biking. To study, Tessa uses quizzes provided by National Geographic and other websites. This is her fourth year in the Bee, and she looks forward to competing again next year.

On Friday, January 25, she took a seventy question, multiple choice test provided by National Geographic. Those with the one hundred highest scores will advance to the Virginia State-Level Bee. For the past three years, winners of the GRHE bee, including Tessa’s brother, Caleb Yarbrough, have advanced to State. The winner of the state bee will participate in the national bee this April.

The organizers of the bee would also like to congratulate Khean Mikkelson, the second place winner, and Elijah Karbach, who won third place.

The Greater Roanoke Home Educators have sponsored a school-level National Geographic Bee for over ten years. Area home educators interested in participating in the Bee should contact GRHE. Registration occurs in early fall.

Submitted by David Norton