Students vie to become Alaska Geographic Bee champion
April 1, 2013
Nancy Tarnai
907-474-5042
4/1/13
Alaska students will compete in the National Geographic state-level Bee Friday, April 5 at the Egan Center in Anchorage. One hundred fourth- through eighth-graders from schools across the state will participate. The contestants have prequalified by winning their school's bee and passing a qualifying test.
The students face a wide variety of questions designed to test their geographic prowess, such as:
“Which state has a climate suitable for growing citrus fruits, California or Maine?”
“The North Atlantic current brings warm waters from the tropics to the west coast of which continent?”
“To visit the ruins of Persepolis, an ancient capital of Persia, you would have to travel to what present-day country?”
Preliminary rounds in the morning will determine the top 10 finalists, who then compete in the afternoon for first place. The winner will represent the state at the National Geographic Bee May 20-22 in Washington, D.C. The national winner receives a $25,000 college scholarship, lifetime membership in the National Geographic Society and a trip to the Galapagos Islands.
For additional information on the National Geographic Bee, please visit www.nationalgeographic.com/geobee.
The geography program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks School of Natural Resources and Agricultural Sciences supports the Alaska bee.
ADDITIONAL CONTACT: Kristin Shea, Alaska Bee coordinator, ak.geographicbee@gmail.com, 907-315-2424.
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