Richelle Zampella, Visually-Impaired 11-Year-Old, Will Compete In National Spelling Bee

On May 30, Richelle Zampella, an 11-year-old from Oklahoma, will compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C.

Nothing out of the ordinary about that, right? She'll only be one of the 275-odd participants at the Bee.

Wrong. Richelle a fifth-grader who in March won the Eastern Oklahoma State Spelling Bee, is legally blind, KJRH reports.

She has been learning to read and write in Braille since she was five.

"It may take us a minute to scan a dictionary page and it would probably take her about five to ten minutes," Cindy Lumpkin, one of Richelle's teachers, told CBS 6-WTVR. "When I had her in kindergarten, by the end of the year she was reading on a second grade level -- in Braille -- and it just takes a lot to learn Braille," she said.

Richelle may have to study two hours a day to prepare for the Bee, but she also likes being outside and listening to music. "I like playing with my sister," she told KJRH. Her 5-year-old sister Katelynn, who is her "number one fan," is also vision-impaired.

According to the Muskogee Phoenix, local spelling bee promoters are trying to raise money so that her father, Joe, and sister, Katelynn, can go to D.C. with her. Joe Zampella said that the support that the family has received has been “unbelievably generous.”

"It makes you understand that people do care about the children," he told the Muskogee Phoenix. “We always thought every child deserves a chance.”

There's no pressure for Richelle to win though. "I know she’ll do her best and that’s what matters," her mother, Sheila Zampella, told Fox 4 Kansas City.

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Comments

[valeriechernek]

03:56 PM on 05/21/2012

A truly inspiring and brave youngster who teaches us all a lesson about stereo-typing opportunities for persons with disabilities. Thanks for showing that attitude and access to technology and learning materials for children help to break down barriers to success! I'd like to share another motivational story about a blind teen who won the National Braille Challenge!

http://www.matildaziegler.com/2011/10/05/contributor-valerie-chernek-from-bookshare-to-brallie-challenge-the-life-of-a-motivated-teen/

[see-ellen2001]

12:20 PM on 05/20/2012

I think any kid you gets into Scripps is amazing. I am not sure why people are so amazed that an intelligent girl who happens to be blind would not do the same. Her blindness is somewhat irrelevant...she is just amazing.

[stalcom]

10:23 PM on 05/19/2012

Way to go, Richelle! No matter where she places, she'll be a winner.

[jonny dipstick]

09:32 AM on 05/18/2012

That is very impressive. I can barely read or write. She is a bit of an inspiration for me.

[unclepoop]

08:51 AM on 05/18/2012

she's visually impaired not hearing impaired... not that big of a deal...

[timskee]

09:55 AM on 05/18/2012

Are you blind, or know someone who is blind? Remember, she is only 11 years old. Her outlook is only as good as she makes it. I think she is an inspiration to the blind, and people who are not blind. Good luck at the national spelling bee Richelle!

[rivercathollow]

04:13 PM on 05/18/2012

Unclepoop: I am a retired teacher of persons who were blind and hearing impaired. To have either condition is a disability. People who are hearing impaired usually function very well in an educational setting with an interpreter provided by the school district. They can read, copy from the board, use the same materials as their non-hearing impaired peers, can see where they are going, are able to read the signs, numbers, etc., on rooms, buses, and can see to get about in grocery stores, department stores, and have good mobility to be independent in general. Very little specialized material is needed for educatio. However, socialization can be more difficult because not everyone knows sign language. Blind people (to the extent that this young lady is blind) cannot read print, must learn a completely way of reading and writing (braille is more complex than you would think; a code for math and science, and another literary code); needs to learn to use specialized technology (BrailleNote, or similar device); braille writer; it takes longer to scan materials, and braille materials must be prepared of the material to be studied so that they can read it (condemning them to just listen to tapes means they are functionally illiterate -- cannot read or write). Blind people accomplish astonishing things every day -- become lawyers, counselors, computer specialists, etc. For those of us who know -- this is a big deal.

[Asuigeneris1]

03:30 AM on 05/18/2012

Good for her, I loved spelling as a child...best of luck to her.

[Brianna Cole]

11:51 PM on 05/17/2012

Do your best!

[Robert Grif]

11:48 PM on 05/17/2012

I wonder if her hearing abilities are more than above average?

[rubydragonfly88]

12:57 AM on 05/18/2012

Visually impaired people have the same hearing ability as sighted people, but she would be more sensitive to sound because she relies on it more.

[oaoroho]

11:03 PM on 05/17/2012

The thought of having to learn braille when compaired to reading seems quite complicated and as a kid I use to close my eyes and feel the small dots on anything that had them. Back then I truly though the blind had "super powers" and where able to feel, hear, etc better then reglar people. I use to spend a lot of time trying things with my eyes closed in hopes of obtaining the "super powers", but all I ever got was a few bruises from tripping over promotional displays in tore isles and sidewalk curbs.
This little girl is amazing and she should be very proud to have made it as far as she has. I bet her parents are excited and happy as they are proud their daughter is so dedicated to her education and refusing to let her inability to see keep her from excelling in life.
Great job Richelle! Good luck in the National spelling bee!

[gatorhans]

09:51 PM on 05/17/2012

God Bless her !!!!! You go girl , win it all !!!!

[rollintthunder]

06:26 PM on 05/17/2012

OUTSTANDING...you go Richelle! You're already a winner!

[websailor]

06:05 PM on 05/17/2012

She is blind not deaf so that should not handy cap her. Hope she wins just because is an example to others.

[see-ellen2001]

10:07 PM on 05/17/2012

Web: you'd be surprised how many people ask if a deaf person uses Braille :)

[opus1dog]

03:32 PM on 05/17/2012

I hope she wins - you can visualize greatness when you close your eyes.