--- title: Scripps Spelling Bee: 6-Year-Old Speller Disqualified description: Six-year-old Edith Fuller, the youngest-ever contestant in the Scripps National Spelling Bee, will not advance to the finals canonical: https://time.com/4800680/scripps-spelling-bee-youngest-speller/ author: Ryan Kilpatrick article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-06-01T09:32:36.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:47:30.570Z og:title: Youngest Ever Speller Disqualified From Scripps Finals og:description: Edith Fuller, 6, has plenty of time to try again og:url: https://time.com/4800680/scripps-spelling-bee-youngest-speller/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt27fd2d7f0967d1f2/6988cfb67cdbacc99bd5894a/gettyimages-690946910.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Students Compete At Annual Scripps National Spelling Bee og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Youngest Ever Speller Disqualified From Scripps Finals twitter:description: Edith Fuller, 6, has plenty of time to try again twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt27fd2d7f0967d1f2/6988cfb67cdbacc99bd5894a/gettyimages-690946910.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Youngest Contestant in this Year's Scripps National Spelling Bee Has Been Disqualified ## Video: An Unflappable Sixth-Grader Has Won the Scripps National Spelling Bee [Watch (HLS stream): An Unflappable Sixth-Grader Has Won the Scripps National Spelling Bee](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/8GPKmOLN.m3u8) (0:38)  _Published 2017-06-02. Ananya Vinay never looked all that impressed by any of the words she was given in the finals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee._ by [Ryan Kilpatrick](https://time.com/author/ryan-kilpatrick/) ## Ryan Kilpatrick Jun 1, 2017 9:32 AM UTC  Edith Fuller of Tulsa, Oklahoma, who is the youngest speller this year, spells her word during round two of 2017 Scripps National Spelling Bee at Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center May 31, 2017 in National Harbor, Maryland. Edith Fuller of Tulsa, Oklahoma, who is the youngest speller this year, spells her word during round two of 2017 Scripps National Spelling Bee at Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center May 31, 2017 in National Harbor, Maryland.Alex Wong—Getty Images by [Ryan Kilpatrick](https://time.com/author/ryan-kilpatrick/) ## Ryan Kilpatrick Jun 1, 2017 9:32 AM UTC She came, she saw, she spelled. But 6-year-old kindergartener Edith Fuller, the youngest wordsmith ever to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee, will not be participating in the finals. ABC Buffalo [reports](http://www.wkbw.com/news/6-year-old-eliminated-from-spelling-bee-finals) that Fuller, who correctly spelled the words “nyctinasty” and “tapas” onstage in National Harbor, Maryland, was disqualified from the finals due to her performance on a written test. Better luck next year. Fuller, from Tulsa, Oklahoma, was just [five years old when she qualified](http://time.com/4692317/scripps-spelling-bee-edith-fuller/) for the bee in March. Her competitors range from eight to 15 years old, [according to](http://spellingbee.com/statistics) Scripps statistics. The largest contingent of participants are 13 years old. Although spellers must be no older than 15, there is no minimum age to qualify. Two other six-year-olds have gotten through in previous years, but Fuller is younger than both, [according to ](http://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/year-youngest-competitor-scripps-national-spelling-bee/story?id=47728060)ABC News. **Read More:** [_Past Winners of the Scripps National Spelling Bee: Where They Are Now_](http://time.com/4344080/scripps-national-spelling-bee-winners-where-are-they-now/?iid=sr-link1) The oldest of four children, Fuller is homeschooled. Her parents say they discovered their daughter’s talent during a family game and helped her study for the big stage in 20-minute sessions, [reports](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/edith-fuller-spelling-bee-2017-young-contestant/) CBS News. As well as being an aspiring zoologist, Fuller plays the piano, sings in her church’s children’s choir, and is a big [fan](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/edith-fuller-spelling-bee-2017-young-contestant/) of hide and seek. \[[ABC,](http://www.wkbw.com/news/6-year-old-eliminated-from-spelling-bee-finals) [CBS](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/edith-fuller-spelling-bee-2017-young-contestant/)\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4800680/scripps-spelling-bee-youngest-speller/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4800680/scripps-spelling-bee-youngest-speller/"},"headline":"The Youngest Contestant in this Year's Scripps National Spelling Bee Has Been Disqualified","datePublished":"2017-06-01T09:32:36.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:47:30.570Z","description":"Edith Fuller correctly spelled the word \"nyctinasty,\" but she'll need to polish her writing skills before next year's tournament","url":"https://time.com/4800680/scripps-spelling-bee-youngest-speller/","keywords":["Newsfeed","U.S.","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt27fd2d7f0967d1f2/6988cfb67cdbacc99bd5894a/gettyimages-690946910.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ryan Kilpatrick","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ryan-kilpatrick/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt27fd2d7f0967d1f2/6988cfb67cdbacc99bd5894a/gettyimages-690946910.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Students Compete At Annual Scripps National Spelling Bee","caption":"Students Compete At Annual Scripps National Spelling Bee","creditText":"Alex Wong—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4800680/scripps-spelling-bee-youngest-speller/","name":"The Youngest Contestant in this Year's Scripps National Spelling Bee Has Been Disqualified"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"An Unflappable Sixth-Grader Has Won the Scripps National Spelling Bee","description":"Ananya Vinay never looked all that impressed by any of the words she was given in the finals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/8GPKmOLN/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2017-06-02T14:28:56.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/8GPKmOLN.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4800680/scripps-spelling-bee-youngest-speller/","duration":"PT38S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4800680/scripps-spelling-bee-youngest-speller/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```