2017 Atchison County Spelling Bee participants included: Front row (left to right) Hayden Riley, Alex Barnett, Devin Guajardo, Sophia Martin, Riley Walker and Trenton Kingery. Back row: Alaina Armstrong, Johnny Davis, Aubrey Watkins, Alexis VanSickle and Cody Frohn.

Twelve students from Fairfax, Rock Port and Tarkio took part in the Atchison County Spelling Bee on February 15, 2017 in the Rock Port R-II Gymnasium. Including four representatives from each school ranging from 5th to 8th grade. The students were given instruction by Mrs. Amy Skillen the pronouncer, followed by a practice round.
Judges for the competition were Dr. Deborah Taylor, Tarkio; Mr. Steve Waigand, Rock Port; and Mr. Dustin Barnes, Fairfax.
Each student is given a word. They may ask questions, such as the definition, have it used in a sentence, and so on. Once the student starts spelling they may start over but they can not change the order of the letters they have given.
It was a total of twenty rounds, before a clear winner was announced.
Sophia Martin, Aubrey Watkins and Devin Guajardo were the final three spellers. In round eight Devin went out on the word loam, leaving Martin and Watkins. The two battled back and forth for the next twenty rounds, each missspelling a word, until Aubrey Watkins won with the word Petunia.
Aubrey Watkins, Rock Port and Sophia Martin, Tarkio, will compete in the Northwest Regional Spelling Bee in St. Joseph, Mo. on March 11, 2017.