Responding successfully to a question about Honduras helped Lincolnwood sixth grader Simon Solano earn bragging rights as the 2016 Geography Bee champion of Lincoln Hall Middle School.
For Solano, who said he dreams of becoming a genealogist one day, having a mom who works for Chicago’s Field Museum lends a hefty boost to his well-rounded knowledge of world geography, he said.
“My mom helps with conservation of rainforests in Peru and a little bit in Colombia,” Solano said. “She inspires me to learn.”
The 11-year-old admits he didn’t spend much time preparing for the competition, which sixth grade social studies teacher Wendy Kotrba said starts out as a written test taken by the entire student body of about 435 students.
The top 10 highest-scoring students in sixth through eighth grades earn a spot in the verbal competition, which was held at the school Dec. 1.
Securing a place in that round is an achievement to be proud of, but it can be devastating for the students who fall short despite giving it their best shot, according to Kotrba.
“I had two kids crying after the test results came in because they didn’t make it into the bee,” Kotrba said. “I find that some students—a small percentage—are passionate about geography and it’s not a result of the teachers.”
Some students, she said, seem to have a natural passion for learning about the histories and locations of other countries. Other kids, like Solano, take inspiration from family or have an interest in their cultural backgrounds.
Lincolnwood officials proudly tout the diversity of the village’s residents as a reason for standing out from some of its North Shore-area neighbors.
Lincoln Hall students represent about 42 different cultures, which Kotrba said sparks a natural interest in and awareness of places outside of the U.S.
“Kids in general at Lincoln Hall are interested in the world because they came from Serbia, Syria, Russia, and so many other places. So there’s an inherent interest at least in the country they came from,” Kotrba said, adding that some students have traveled with their families all over the world.
“I think there’s definitely an interest in geography at the school, but in terms of the bee, there’s a small percentage of kids who seem to get into it,” she said.
For the small group of kids who do put their hearts into geography, even if it’s just for the sake of the competition, winning is everything.
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“My classmates thought it was cool because I won against an eighth grader,” Solano said. “My family was proud of me and everyone jumped up and was cheering.”
Unlike a spelling bee, where words can be memorized, the geography bee has a kind of randomness to it, Kotrba said So winning sometimes involves a little bit of luck. The questions are pulled from a pool of topics covering hundreds of countries and their geographical features and histories, so a student who gets a question about Lake Michigan, for example, would instantly gain an edge over a classmate who gets asked about the name of a river in China.
“I had one girl spend months studying Africa, which is great, but then you get asked about Gettysburg in the bee,” she said. “There’s definitely a random quality to it.”
Solano’s winning question would leave most adults perplexed: “Archaeologists have begun excavating an ancient lost city in the region called La Mosquitia in which country north of Nicaragua?”
Eighth grader Ephraim Bennett came in second place.
Solano’s next step is to take the state exam, and he’ll compete against other winners across Illinois if he qualifies.
Natalie Hayes is a freelancer.