The youngest pupils at Pearl B. Larsen Elementary School got to show off what they know about V.I. history and culture Tuesday during the annual Violet Connor and Rae Armstrong V.I. Heritage Quiz Bowl.
Third-grader Kobey Knight took the top spot, followed by first-grader Shenique Sealey. The first-place team was Royal Cruzan Spices, made up of Tyreek Turner, Kenyon Castillo, Aloshe Bernard, Omar De Haza, Elyssa Martinez and Julian Aponte Jr.
“As a first-grade teacher, I am very impressed with Shenique winning second place and how well she did,” Connor said.
Held for students in first through third grade, the quiz bowl honors retired teachers Connor and Armstrong for their years of promoting and encouraging academic excellence in V.I. culture, heritage and history.
On Tuesday the school’s auditorium was full of family members, teachers and classmates showing support for the four teams—Soursop Tizan, Golden Apples, Royal Cruzan Spices and the Guavaberry Tarts—made up of 24 students, including alternates.
Fidgeting in little chairs on stage before their turn came, Tuesday’s participants were undeniably some of the cutest, many girls sporting big hair bows and others with great big toothy grins.
Some stepped up to the microphone with bravado and loudly blurted out the answers, some just stood and drew a blank for the 15 seconds allotted, others got high-fives from teammates, and most appeared downcast when they missed the question.
The competition began with the individual responses and then the team response, with questions ranging from the names of mangoes to the name of a public library on St. Croix. A tiebreaker was then held between the 12 top-scoring individuals.
Trophies were then awarded, and each contestant got a gift bag with books and candy. The Kids From Room 107 provided entertainment.
Armstrong, who worked at Larsen from when the doors opened, in 1971, until retirement in 2001, said she loves the bowl, adding that children have to know V.I. roots and where they are from in order to know where they are going.
She added the bowl gives the students knowledge, discipline and maturity.
“This prepares them and is good training for all future quiz bowls,” Armstrong said.
Connor, who retired from Juanita Gardine Elementary School in 1992, said the students need to know and understand the past and present to keep their culture and heritage alive. A gardening enthusiast, Connor said maintaining the students’ sense of heritage is like keeping gardens of local plants alive.
