Akeelah and the Bee
Akeelah was very successful in her Spelling Bee competitions. How many different learning skills are there in this movie to help all the spellers learn? Akeelah’s learning skills are what help her move further and further into the spelling bee. Basically, everyone in this movie has a different way of studying or learning. Akeelah, is a smart 11 year old girl who attends Crenshaw Middle School. She didn’t need to study for her spelling test, because she didn’t make mistakes on her tests. Akeelah doesn’t really fit in at school, she’s afraid of acting like she’s smarter than her friends or classmates.
Before she goes for the Crenshaw School wide Spelling Bee, she studies alone. This makes her a Intrapersonal Learner in the beinging of the story. The principle wanted Dr. Larabee to coach her for the Regional Spelling Bee. Akeelah tells her principle no that does not need to be coached. She wanted to study alone. When Akeelah finally agrees to meet with Dr. Larabee. She still very standoffish. She acted stubborn and hardheaded that she doesn’t need any help. So she ends up study by herself for the District Spelling Bee. She was very scared and nervous when she goes on the stage to spell because of all the people.
She won tenth and made to the Regional Bee. There at the District Spelling Bee she befriends Javier a Mexican boy and fellow speller. He invites her to a spelling club at his school. The spelling club conducts itself outside on a basketball court as they pass the ball to each other to spell words. That makes me think that Javier is a Body/ Kinesthetic learner because he learns through body sensation moves around by playing basketball and spelling words. He also falls into Naturalistic learner because he’s outside while playing basketball and spelling words.
Akeelah falls under the same two category but she does it a little different. She bounces the balls as she spells each letter. Another reason why I feel this way is because she likes to be outside when studies her words. She overcomes her stage fright at the Regional Spelling Bee she’s a lot more confident. This is where I noticed that Akeelah is Verbal/ Linguistic learner. I then noticed another habit that she taps her hand on her leg as she says each letter. Just like when she was bouncing the basketball, again another example of her being a Body/ Kinesthetic learner.
Dr. Larabee gives her a jump rope to spell the words as she spells, because she keeps time to spell better. This would make her musical/ rhythm because she’s keeping the rhythm as she jumps even when she taps on the side of her leg. Akeelah finally decides to apologize to Dr. Larabee so he can coach her. He doesn’t only want her to learn the words but life lessons as well. Dr. Larabee seems to be a Verbal/ Linguistic learner because he is a teacher and he communicates well through language and is a good speller. He was a former spelling bee competitor when he was younger.
Dr. Larabee also seems to be a Intrapersonal learner like Akeelah towards the end of the movie. The reason why I feel this way is because ,he wants to be alone doesn’t want to teach Akeelah any more. Dr. Larabee feels that teaching her is unpredictable. He gives her 5,000 flashcards to learn on her own. Akeelah gets overwhelmed with all those words, that she loses her motivation. With all the help of the neighborhood she learned all the words. As she was learning all these words she was using her jump rope outside going up and down the street.
This is another example of her being a Body/ Kinesthetic and a Naturalistic learner. Because she moving her body and she’s outside while she does it. She makes it to National Spelling bee in Washington, D. C. Everything goes great because of her using a fake jump rope on stage to spell her words. The two finalist were Akeelah and Dylan, a Chinese boy who has won second place in the last two National Spelling Bee’s. He is very contemptuous of her. Dylan’s father will not settle for second best.
Dylan seems to be a Visual/ Spatial learner because he memorizes his words instead of learning them. They both win the National Championship. Mnemonic devices were used by all the spellers in this movie, because they would learn the spelling words. Then they use them when they would need them. For example they would use the word when they were ask to spell it In conclusion, most of the characters’ in this movie all had different learning style’s. But was also about the pursuit to pursuit to excellence the speller’s used. The difference between cramming and learning.
